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ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS 



CONCISE COMPENDIUM OF THE HISTORY OF 
ENGLAND AND ITS PEOPLE 



BY If 

H. POMEROY BREWSTER 

ANU 

GEORGE H. HUMPHREY 

/" 



CHICAGO ) Z3^/X; / 

S. C. GRIGGS AND COMPANY I 

1892 'C 



[the library I 

|eFC01IGRESS| 
WASHIMOTOMM 



Copyright, 1892 
By S. C. CRIGGS AND (^OMPANY 



i'^ 



«riK ILnkfsilir pnss 

R. DONNELl.KY \- SONS CO., CHICAGO 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



Fore-words, . ... 

Chronological Table of Notable Events pn:or: h) 

THE Norman Conquest, .... 

Rulers prior to the Norman Conquii-t, 
Rulers After the Norman Conquest, 
Genealogy of English Sovereigns, . • . 

Table Showing the Succession to the Crown of Eng- 
land, ....... 

Chronolo(;ical Table of Notable Events Connected 

WITH British Rule in India, . 
Memorable Naval Engagements in English History, 
Lord Chancellors or Lord Keepers of Englatid, 
English Universities and CoLi.rr • , 
Celts and Romans, ...... 

Saxons and Danes, .... 

Historical Memoranda of ttt Paxo:i Li::r. . 
Norman Conquest, .... 

William I., .... . 

William II., .... 

Henry I., .... . 

Stephen of Blois, 
Historical Memoranda of the Norman Ijtnf, 
The Angevins or PLANTAcrrrT!^, 

Henry If, 

Richard I.. . 

John, 

Henry III., 

Edward I., 

Edward II., 

Edward III., 

Richard II., 
Historical Memoranda of 



THE PlANTAGENET LiNE, 



X 

xii 



xvm 

xxii 

xxvii 

xxxii 

1 

9 

23 
. 29 

29 

36 

41 
. 40 

49 
. 52 

52 
. 58 

63 
. 69 

74 
. 79 

81 
. 87 

90 



IV 



ENGLAND AND ITS KULERS. 



House of Lancaster, . . . . . .97 

Henky IV 97 

Hf.nry v., 101 

Henky VI., lt>G 

House op York, . . . . . . .111 

Edward I\ . . . . . . . HI 

Edward V., ...... ll-"> 

Richard III., ..... HO 

Historical Memoranda of thr Houses o"^ Tv\n'v\ster 

AND York, . . . . . .119 

House of Tudor, ...... 1-- 

Henry VII., 122 

Henry VIII., 128 

Edward VI., ...... l.'U) 

Mary I., 14.'} 

Elizabeth, ....... 110 

Historical Memoranda of the House of Tudor, . 157 

House of Stuakt — First Epoch, .... 100 

James I., of England and VT. of Scotland . 100 

Charles I., ...... lOS 

The Commonwealth, ..... 170 

The Protectorate, ...... 178 

Oliver Cromwell, ..... 178 

Interregnum, ....... 183 

House of Stuart Second Epncn, . . . 186 

Charles II., 186 

James II 197 

William III. and Mary II 201 

Anne 210 

Historical Memoranda of the House of Stuart, . 210 

House of Hanover, ...... 223 

George I., 223 

George II 227 

George III.. ...... 23.'3 

George IV 248 

William IV 2.-)2 

Victoria, ...... 257 

Historical Memoranda of the House of Hanover, . 277 



FOEE-WOKDS. 



The following pages have been written only 
after long and patient individual study and research, 
followed by careful and critical comparison of our 
personal notes. 

There are so many ways in which the history of 
a nation may be written, that a few words in refer- 
ence to our plan and object may be advisable. 

AVe have adopted an entirely novel plan, for the 
especial purpose of meeting the wants of that large 
class of American readers who have not the time or 
opportunity to read an extended and exhaustive 
history of the Mother Nation, yet who desire a 
practical and comprehensive knowledge of its more 
important features. Hence we have written, not with 
a purpose of showing the causes which have led to 
events, or their results, though when it could be 
done concisely we have furnished that information; 
but with the idea of disengaging from the great 
mass of facts, those which relate to the permanent 
forces of the Nation, and of recording them in a 
clear, terse and succinct manner, thus indicating 
some of the more marked features connected with 
the story of Great Britain, its rulers and its people. 
AVith this in view we have given special attention 
to the jrrowth or decline of the monarchy, the aris- 



VI ENGLAND AND ITS KULERS. 

tocracy, and the democracy; tt) the agricultural, 
manufacturing and commercial interests; and to 
the origin and constantly increasing power of 
Parliament, and the influence of the Church. 

A carefully compiled Index of the events named, 
and a very com[)lete list of notable persons will, we 
think, enable students, scholars, writers for the press, 
and all persons interested in English History, to 
locate on the instant any fact or personage they may 
be in search of, and thus add very materially to the 
value of the book. 

THE AUTHORS. 

Rochester, N. Y., April, 1892. 



CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE OF NOTABLE EVENTS 

PKIOE TO 

THE NORMAN CONQUEST. 



B. C, 

First invasion of Britain l)y the Romans under Julius 

Ciesar, . . . . . . .55 

Second invasion of the Romans under the same nionareh, 5i 
Cunobelin, King of Camulodunum, ... 4 

A. D. 

Invasion under Claudius. Emperor of Rome, . . 4.3 

Nine years War between the Romans and Britons, . 4.3 to .52 

Caractacus, the British Leader, is carried in chains to Rome, 52 
Suetonius Paulinus, in the reign of Nero, landing on the 
Isle of Anglesey, destroys the altars and groves of 
the Druids, ...... Gl 

London is burned by the Britons under Queen Boadicea. 

Romans defeat Queen Boadicea, who poisons herself, Gl 
Roman Rule finally established in Britain by Julius 

Agricola, ....... 78 

Stone Wall and Rampart built from the Tyne to the Sol- 
way Frith l)y the Emperor Adrian, . . 120 1 
Second Wall and Rampart built between the Friths of 

Clyde and Forth, . . . . , ,1.38 

Lucius (St.) First Christian Prince of Britain, dies, . 179 

The See of York, founded, according to tradition, about 180 
Wall of Severus (sixty-eight miles long, twelve feet high, 

eight feet tliick,) built, ... 205 to 207 

Severus holds court at Eboracum [York] . . . 207 

Carausius usurps the power in Britain, . . . 286 

AUectus kills Carausius and usurps the imperial title, 294 
Constantius Chlorus (father of Constantino the Great) 

defeats Allectus and recovers Britain, . . . 29G 

Roman Legions withdraw from Britain to defend Rome 

from the Goths, ...... 410 



Vlll ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

The Saxons, under Hengist and Horsa, land in Britain, 449 

Horsa is killed at the Battle of /Eglesford, Kent, . 455 

Hengist becomes King of Kent, .... 457 

Ella becomes King of South Saxony or Sussex, . , 490 

Cerdic becomes King of West Saxony, or Wessex, . . 519 

Ercenwin becomes King of East Saxony, or Essex, . 527 

Ida, or Idda, becomes King of Northumbria, . . . 547 

Uffa becomes King of East Anglia, . . . 575 
Cridda becomes King of Mercia, and the Saxon Heptarchy 

is thus formed, ...... 582 

St. Augustine arrives in Britain. .... 597 

Ethelbert, King of Kent, the first Christian Saxon King. 

reigns from ..... 5()0 to G15 

University of Cambridge founded by Sebert.King of East 

Anglia, . . . . . . G44 

Danes first invade Britain, ..... 787 

Egbert becomes King of Wessex, .... 800 

Egbert becomes the first King of all Britain, . . 827 

Saxon Heptarchy ends, ..... 828 

Danes defeated at Isle of Thanet, ... 857 

Danes conquer Northumberland, .... 8G7 

Alfred the Great defeats the Danes, . . . 872 

Alfred retires to Isle of Athelney, .... 879 

University of Oxford founded by Alfred the Great, . 886 

Danes invade Britain a second time, .... 891 

Danish Invasion under Svveyn; Ethelred II., bribes them 

to retire, . . . . . . .986 

Massacre of the Danes, . . . . . 1002 

Danes, under Sweyn, conquer Britain, . . . 101.3 
Edmund Ironsides fights six battles with Canute, the 

Danish King, and divides the Kingdom, . . 1016 
Saxon line restored, ..... 1041-42 
Edward III., the Confessor, first attaches the " Broad Seal " 

to Royal Grants, ..... 1048 

Rebellion of Earl Godwin, ..... 1051 

W^illiam, Duke of Normandy, visits England, . . 1051 

Dane-gelt is abolished, ...... 1053 



RULERS PRIOR TO THE NORMAN CONQUEST. 



AX(;i,0-SAXOXS. 



Egbert,* . 
Ethelwolf, . 
Ethelbald, 
Ethelbekt, . 
Ethelred I.. 
Alfred, 

Edwarothk Eldek, 
Athklstank, . 

EoMUNl), I., 

Edred, 

Edwyn, 

Edgar; 

Edward II., or tlu' Martyr, 

Ethelred II., 

Edmund Ironsides, 



BEIGNED. 

827 - 8.36 
836 -857 
8r)7 - 860 
86() 866 
866 - 871 
871 901 
901 - 925 
925-941 
941 - 947 
947 - 955 
955 - 959 
959 - 975 
975 - 978 
978 - 1016 
1016 



DANES. 



Sweyn, 
Canute, 
Harold, 
Hardicanute, 



1013 to 1014 

1014 to lo:56 
1().3() to 1039 
1039 to 1041 



SAXONS. 



Edward III., or the Confessor, 

Harold II., son of Godwin, Earl of Kent, 



1041 to 1005 
1006 



*Was descended from Cerdic, the first King of Wessex, 519; whose father, 
a Saxon peneral, arrived in Britain, A.D., 495. Tlie Kings of England descend 
from him in tho male line of Edward the Confessor, and in the female line, 
to her present Majesty. 



RULERS AFTER THE NORMAN CONQUEST. 



NOUMAX. 



Wflliam 1 1000-1087 

William II., 1087-1100 

Henry I., 1100 li:}5 

Stephen [Houho of L-.-is. | . . . ll.'3.j-ll;M 

• 

VLXSTM.KSKT. 

Henry II 1154-1189 

Richard 1 1189-1199 

John, 1199 1216 

Henry III 121G - 1272 

Edward 1 1272-1307 

Edward II., 1.'507 - 1327 

Edward III 1327-1377 

Richard II., 1377-1399 

LANCASTER AND YoKK. 

Henry IV 1399 - 1413 

Henry v., 1413-1422 

Henry VI., 1422-1461 

Edward IV., 1461-1483 

Edward V 1483-1483 

Richard III., 1483-1485 



Henry VII 1485-1509 

Henry VIII., 1509-1547 

Edward VI., ...... 1547 - 1553 

Mary I., 1553-1558 

Elizabeth, 1558-1603 



RULERS AFTER THE NORMAN CONQUEST. XI 



STUAKT, FIRST EPOCH. 

James 1 1G03 - 1625 

Charles 1 1G25-1649 

coMMoNWKAi/ni. 1649-1653 

PROTECTORATE. 

Oliveu CuoMWELFi, ..... 1653-1658 

i;U ||Ai;i> CKOMWKI.I. AM> PARLIAMENT. 10.58-1660 
STl'ART, SECOND El'oCII. 

Charles II 1660-1685 

James II 1685-1681) 

STI:ART ami NASSAU. 

William III., 1 (16S9-1702 

and [ ] 

Mary II., ) (1689-1694 

Anne 1702-1714 

HANOVER. 

George I., 1714-1727 

George II., ...... 1727 - 17(K) 

George III. 176C-1820 

George IV 1820 -18:W 

William IV 1830-1837 

Victoria, ...... 1837 



GENEALOGY OF ENGLISH SOVEREIGNS. 
FROM EGBERT TO VICTORIA. 



1. Egbert. Descended from Cerdic. "li'J. 

2. Ethelwolf. Son of Egbert. 

3. Etheluald. "1 

4. ETHELnEKT. 

!- Sons of Egbert. 

5. Ethelued I. 



6. Alfred [The Great]. 

7. Edw.vrd I. Tlio Elder. Son of Alfred. 

8. Athelst.w. 1 
9. Edmund I. i Sons of Edward 1. 

10. P]dred. J 

11. Edwy. ) 

^„ „ > Sons of Edmund 1. 

12. Edgar. ^ 

13. Edward II, The Martyr. ) 

,, „ ,, > Sons of Edgar. 

14. Ethelred II. ) 

1.-). SwEYN. The Dane. 

16. Edmi'nd II. Ironsides. Son of Ethelrod II. 

17. C^ANLTE, The Dane. 

18. Harold I. 



,. „ ( Sons of Canute. 

19. Hardicaxcte. 

20. Edward III. [The Confessor.] Surviving sou of Ethelred II., and 

Emma, who was the daughter of Richard I., 
Duke of Normandy. 

21. Harold II. Last of the Saxon Kings. Son of Earl (xodwiu, whose 

daughter married Edward III. 

22. William I. [The Conquerer.] A second cousin of Edward III., son of 

Robert, Duke of Normandy, grandson of Richard II., 
Duke of Normandy ; and great-grandson of Richard I., 
Duke of Normandy, the father of Emma, wife of Ethel- 
red II. Matilda or Maud of Flanders, wife of William 
I., being a direct descendant of Alfred The Great. 



GENEALOGY OF ENGLISH SOVEREIGNS. Xlll 

23. William II. Son of William I. 

24. Heney I. do. His wife, Matihia or Maud of Scotland, 

being a descendant of Edmund II. [Ironsides]. 

25. Stephen. [Of Blois.] Grandson of William I. 

26. Henry II. Son of Matilda or Maud, who married Geoffrey Plantagcnet, 

fount of Anjou ; after the death of her first husband, 
Henry V., Emperor of Germany. 

27. RiCH.VKD I. 

Sons of Henry II. 



28. John [Lackland] 

29. Henry III. Son of John. 

30. Edward I. Son of Henry III. 

31. Edward II. Son of Edward 1. 

32. Edward III. Son of Edward II. 

33. Richard II. Son of Edward The Black Prince and grandson of Edward 

III. 

34. Henry IV. Son of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, and grandson of 

Edward III. 
a5. Henry V. Son of Henry IV. 
;%. Henry VJ. Son of Henry V. and Catharine of Valois. 

37. Edw.vkd IV. St>n of Ricliard, Duke of York ; grandson of Richard, Earl 

of Cambridge [who married Anne Mortimer]; great- 
grandson of Edmund Langley, Duke of York, who was 
a son of Edward III. 

38. Edward V. Son of Edward IV. Murdered by Ricliard III. in the Tower 

of London. 

39. Richard III. Brother of Edward IV. He married Anno Neville, widow 

of Edward, Prince of Wales [son of Henry VI.]. Killed 
at Tewkesbury. 

40. Henry VII. [Called Henry of Richmond or Henry of Lancaster.] Son 

of Edmund Tudor, Earl of Richmond ; grandson of 
Owen udor, who married Catharine of Valois after 
the death of Henry V. Henry VII., by his marriage 
with Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV., 
united the Houses of Y'ork and Lancaster. Lady Jane 
Grey was descended from Henry VII. 

41. Henry VIIL Son of Henry VII. 

42. Edward VI. Son of Henry VIII. and Jano Seymour. 

43. Mary. Daughter of Henry VIII. and Catharine of Aragon. 

44. Elizabeth. Daughter Oi Henry VIII. and Anno Boleyn. 



XIV ENGLAND AND ITS EULERS. 

45. James I. [Stuart.] Son of Mary, Queen of Scotland, and grandson of 

James V.. [Stuart] of Scotland. Great-grandson of 
James IV., [Stuart] of Scotland who married Margaret 
Tudor, daughter of Henry VII. 

46. Charles I. Son of James I. Beheaded. 

47. Charles II. Son of Charles I. 

48. James II. Son of Charles I. 

49. Mary. Daughter of James II., who married William II. of Orange, 

known as William 111. of England. 

50. Anne. Daughter of .Jamos 11. 

James, known in history as tlie "Old Pretender." was 
son of James II. Charles [The Young Pretender] was 
son of James, the Old Pretender. 

51. George I. Son of the Elector of Hanover and Sophia, youngest daughter 

of the Elector Palatine and Elizabeth, a daughter of 
James I., who married Frederick, Elector Palatine, who 
later became King of Bohemia. 

52. George II. Son of George I. 

53. George III. Son of Frederick, Prince of Wales, and grandson of George II. 

54. George IV. Son of George III. 

55. William IV. Son of George III. 

56. Victoria. Daughter of Edward, Duke of Kent, who was son of George 

III. 



TABLE SHOWING THE SUCCESSION TO THE 
CROWN OF ENGLAND, 

AFTER QUEEN VICTORIA. 



ARRANGED IN THE ORDER OF DESCENT. 



DESCENDANTS OF QUEEN VICTORIA. 

1. The Prince of Wales, son. 

2. Prince George, grandson. 

3. Duchess of Fife, granddaughter. 

4. The Lady Alexandra Duff, great-granddaughter. 

5. Princess Victoria, of Wales, granddaughter. 

6. Princess Maud, of Wales, granddaughter. 

7. The Duke OF Edinburgh, son. 

8. Prince Alfred of Edinburgh, grandson. 

9. Princess Marie, of Edinburgh, granddaughter. 

10. Princess Victoria Melita, of Edinburgh, granddaughter. 

11. Princess Alexandria, of Edinburgh, granddaughter. 

12. Princess Beatrice, of Edinburgh, granddaughter. 

13. The Duke of Connaught, son. 

14. Prince Arthur, of Connaught, grandson. 

15. Princess Margaret, of Connaught, granddaughter. 

16. Princess Victoria Patricia, of Connaught, granddaughter. 

17. The Duke of Albany, grandson. 

18. Princess Alice, of Albany, granddaughter. 

19. The Empress Frederick, of Germany, daughter. 

20. The German Emperor, grandson. 

21. The Crown Prince of Prussia, great-grandson. 

22. Prince William Frederick of Prussia, great-grandson. 
2;?. Prince Adalbert of Prussia, great grandson. 

24. Prince August of Prussia, great-grandson. 

25. Prince Oscar of Prussia, great-grandson. 

XV 



XVI ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

26. Prince Joachim Franz Humbert of Prussia, great-grandson. 

27. Prince Henry of Prussia, grandson. 

28. Prince Waldemar of Prussia, great-grandson. 

29. The Hereditary Princess of Saxe-Meiningen, granddaughter. 

30. Princess Feodora of Saxe-Meiningen, great-granddaughter. 

31. Princess Frederika of Prussia, granddaugliter. 

32. The Crown Princess of Greece, granddaughter. 

33. Prince George of Greece, great-grandson. 

31. Princess Margaretta of Prussia, granddaughter. 

35. The Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse, grandson. 

36. Princess Loui.se of Battenberg, granddaughter. 

37. Princess Victoria Alice of Battenberg, great granddaughter. 

3«. Princess Louise Alexandra of Battenberg, great-granddaughter. 

39. The Grand Duchess Sergius of Russia, granddaughter. 

40. Princess Henry of Prussia, wife of No. 27. granddaughter. 

41. Princess Victoria Alice Helena of Hesse, granddaughter. 

42. Princess Christian of Schleswig-Holstein, daughter. 

43. Prince Christian Victor of Schleswig-Holstein, grandson. 

44. Prince Albert of Schleswig-Holstein, grandson, 

45. Princess Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein, granddaughter. 

46. Princess Franziska of Schleswig-Holstein, granddaughter. 

47. The Marchioness of Lorne, daughter. 

48. Princess Beatrice, Princess Henry of Battenberg, daughter. 

49. Prince Alexander Albert of Battenberg, grandson. 

50. Prince Leopold of Battenberg, grandson. 

51. Prince Donald of Battenberg, grandson. 

52. Princess Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg, granddaughter. 

descendants of king GEORGE III. 

53. The Duke of Cumberland, great-grandson. 

54. Prince George of Cumberland, great-great-grandson. 

55. Prince Christian of Cumberland, great-great-grandson. 

56. Prince Ernest of Cumberland, great-great-grandson. 

57. Princess Mary of Cumberland, great-great-gran -"daughter. 

58. Princess Alexandra of Cumberland, great-great-granddaughter. 

59. Princess Olga of Cumberland, great-great-granddaughter. 

60. Princess Fredrica of Hanover, Baroness von Pawel Rammingen, 

great-granddaughter. 

61. Princess Mary Ernestina of Hanover, great-granddaughter. 

62. The Duke of Cambridge, grandson. 



SUCCESSION TO THE CROWN OF ENGLAND. XVll 

63. The Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, granddaughter. 

64. The Hereditary Grand Duke of Mecklenburg, great-grandson. 

65. Prince Frederick George of Mecklenburg, great-grandson. 

66. Princess Victoria Mary of Mecklenburg, great-granddaughter. 

67. Princess Augusta of Mecklenburg, great-granddaughter. 

68. The Duchess of Teck, great-granddaughter. 

69. Prince Adolphus of Teck, great-grandson. 

70. Prince Francis of Teck, great-grandson. 

71. Prince Alexander of Teck, great-grandson. 

72. Princess May, great-granddaughter. 



CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE OF NOTABLE EVENTS 



CONNECTED WITH 



BRITISH RULE IN INDIA. 



Attenij)t made to roach India by the Nortliwcst passage, . 1496 
Attemj^t made to reach India by the Nortlicast passar:c, 1553 

Sir Francis Drake's expedition, .... 1577 

First adventure from England, .... 1591 

First charter to the East India company, . . . 1602 

Second charter to the East India company, . . 1609 

Calcutta purchased, ...... 1698 

Capture of Calcutta by Surajah Dowlah, . . 1756 

Surajah Dowlah imprisons 140 British sul)jects, of whom 

123 perish in the Black Hole, . . . May 19, 1756 

Calcutta retaken by colonel, afterwards Lord Clive; who 

defeats Surajah Dowlah, at Plassey, . June 20, 1757 

Warren Hastings becomes governor of Bengal, April 13, 1772 

Warren Hastings, First Governor General of India, . 1771 

Pondicherry surrenders to Sir Eyre Coote, . Jan. 17, 1761 

The strong fortress of Gwalior taken by Major Popham, 

Aug. 4, 1780 
Hyder AH overruns the Carnatic, and defeats the British, 

. Sept. 10, 1780 
Arcot taken by Hyder Ali, . . . Oct. 31, 1780 

Lord Macartney arrives as governor of Madras, . June 22, 1781 
Hyder Ali signally defeated by Sir Eyre Coote, July 1, 1781 

Death of Hyder Ali, and accession of his son, Tippof) Saib, 

Dec. 11, 1782 

Trial of Warren Hastings begins, . . Feb. 13, 1788 

Definitive treaty with Tippoo; his two sons hostages, 

March 19, 1792 
Government of Lord Mornington, afterwards Marquis of 

Wellesley, May 17, 1798 



TABLE OF NOTABLE EVENTS. XIX 

Seringapatam stormed, and Ti^jpoo Saib killed, . May 4, 1799 
Victories of the British; the Carnatic conquered, . 1800 

Victories of Sir Arthur Wellesley at Assaye, . . 1803 

Marquis Cornwallis assumes the government, . July 30, 1805 

Act by which the trade to India is thrown open; that to 

China remaining with the company, . July 31, 1813 

Lord Amhersfs government, . . . Aug. 1, 1823 

Lord William Bentinck arrives as governor-general, July 4, 1828 
Act opening the trade to India, and tea trade, etc., to China, 

forming a new era in British commerce, . Aug. 28, 1833 
Lord Auckland, as governor-general; leaves England, Sept. 1835 
Battle of Ghuznee; victory of Sir John, afterwards Lord 

Keane, July 23, 1839 

Soujah Shah restored to his sovereignty, he and the 

British army enter Cabul, . . Aug. 7, 1839 

Dost Mahomed surrenders to England, . . Nov. 5, 1840 

General rising against the British at Cabul; Sir Alexander 

Burns and other officers murdered, . Nov. 2, 1841 

Lord EUenborough is appointed governor-general, Oct. 13, 1841 
Sir William Macnaghten treacherously assassinated. Dec. 25, 1841 
The British, under truce, evacuate Cabul, placing Lady 

Sale, etc., as hostages, in the hands of Akbar Khan; 

a dreadful massacre ensues, . . . Jan. 6, 1842 

Ameers of Scinde defeated by Sir Charles Napier; Scinde 

is afterwards annexed to the British Empire, Feb. 17, 1843 
Battles of Maharajpoor and Punniar; the strong fortress of 

Gwalior, the " Gibraltar of the East," taken, Dec. 29, 1843 
Sir Henry Harding is appointed governor-general, . May 2, 1844 
The Sikh troops cross the Setlej river, and attack the 

British post at Ferozeporc, which is held by Sir 

John Littler, Dec. 14. 1845 

Battle of Aliwal; the Sikhs are defeated, . Jan. 28, 1846 

Battle of Sobraon; the enemy is defeated with immense 

loss in killed and drowned, . . . Feb. 10, 1846 

[The Sikhs lose 10,000 men, the British 2,338 in killed and 

wounded,] 
The citadel of Lahore is occupied by the British under Sir 

Hugh Gough, Feb. 20, 1846 

Great battle between the British under Lord Gough, and 

the Sikhs under Sheere Singh, at Ramnuggur, Nov. 22, 1848 



XX ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Moultan taken, after a long siege, . . Jan. 3, 1849 

Sheere Singh is defeated by Lord Gough, . Feb. 21, 1849 

The Punjaub formally annexed to the British crown, 

March 29, 1849 

The Sepoys of the Bengal Army mutiny and war begins 

at Barrackpore, .... March, 1857 
It is followed by a mutiny at Meerut near Delhi, May 10, 18.")7 
Martial law is proclaimed in India . May, 1857 
Mutiny begins at Lucknow, .... May 30, 1857 
Sir Henry Lawrence anticipating the revolt fortifies and 
provisions the garrison at Lucknow to which he 
retires with his troops and all the English inhabi- 
tants, ' July 2, 1857 

Cawnpore being garrisoned by native troops under Sir 
Hugh Wheeler, they revolt and are joined by Nana 
Sahib, who captures the place June 2G, 1857, and on 
the 28th, massacres great numbers of the British 
without regard to age or sex. Cawnpore is retaken 
by General Havelock, . . . July IG and 17, 1857 

Cawnpore is again immediately besieged by the mu- 
tineers. 
Assault of Delhi begins, Sept. 14; the city is taken, Sept. 
20; and the king captured Sept. 21; his son and 
grandson being slain by Colonel Hudson, . Sept. 22, 1857 
Havelock marches to Luckncnv and relieves the besieged 
residency; he retires and leaves Outrani in com- 
mand; Neill is killed, . . . Sept. 25, 26, 1857 
Sir Colin Campbell [since Lord Clyde], is appointed com- 
mander-in-chief, July 11 and arrives at Cawnpore, 

Nov. ;}, 1857 
Havelock dies of dysentery at Alumbagh, . Nov. 2.5, 1857 

Trial of the king of Delhi who is sentenced to transport- 
ation. .... Jan. 27. to March 9, 1858 
Sir C. Campbell marches to Lucknow, Feb. 11; the siege 
commences March 8; it is taken by successive as- 
saults; the enemy retreats; Hudson killed, March 14-19, 1858 
The government of the East India Company ceases, Sept. 1, 1858 
The ex-king of Delhi sails for the Cape of Good Hope, 
Dec. 4-11 but the colonists refuse to receive him; he 
is sent to Rangoon, ..... 1858 



TABLE OF NOTABLE EVENTS. XXI 

Earl Canning is appointed first Viceroy to India, . 1858 
Defeat of the Begum of Oude and Nana Sahib by General 

Horsford, ..... Feb. 10, IS.")',) 

Thanksgiving in Englandforthe pacification of India, May 1, ISr/J 
East India Company dissolved, . . . Jan. 1, 1871 
The Herati Army of Ayub Khan revolts and defeats a 
British brigade; but in turn, during the same year, 

are subjugated under General Sir Frederick Roberts, 1880 
The following were Viceroys of India: 

Earl of Elgin 18G2 

Sir John Lawrence, ...... 18G1 

Earl of Mayo, 1SG9 

Earl of Northbroke, ..... 187"J 

Earl of Lytton, . . . . . . . 187G 

Marquis of Flipon, ...... 1880 



MEMORABLE NAVAL ENGAGEMENTS 



ENGLISH HISTORY, 



Alfretl, vvitli ton galleys, defeats oOO sail of Danish pirates 
off the Dorset and Hampshint coasts. See Asser's 
life of Alfred, . . . . . .897 

Near Sluys; Edward III., defeats a French fleet of 400 sail, 
sinking them all, 30,000 French are killed in this 
engagement, ...... 1340 

Between the English and Flemings, tlie latter being 

signally defeated, ..... 1.371 

Between the English and French, the; latter power losing 

80 ships, ...... 1,389 

Near Milford Haven: The English take 14 and destroy 15 

French ships, ...... 140."> 

Off Hartieur, when the Duke of Bedford takes 500 French 

ships, ....... 1416 

In the Downs; the French fleet being captured by the Earl 

of Warwick, ...... 1459 

In the Bay of Biscay; between the Englisli and French, 

the latter being defeated, .... 1512 

Sir Edward Howard defeats the French under Prejeant, 1513 

In the English Channel, the British defeat the French 

fleet with great loss, ..... 1.545 

The Spanish Armada is driven from the English Channel 
to the roads of Calais; in a running fight the Span- 
iards lose 15 ships and 5,000 men. Defeated again, 
they are obliged to bear away for Scotland and Ire- 
land, where their fleet is dispersed by a storm, caus- 
ing a further loss of 17 ships and 5,000 men, July 19, 1588 

Dover Straits; between the Dutch Admiral, Van Tromp, 
and Admiral Blake. The Dutch surprise the English 
in the Downs, 80 sail engaging 40 English, six of 



MEMORABLE NAVAL ENGAGEMENTS. xxiii 

which are taken or destroyed. The Dutch Admiral 
sails in triumph through the Channel, with a broom 
at his masthead, to denote that he had swept 
the English from the seas, . . .June 29, 1652 

In the Downs; same admirals, and nearly same loss, 

Sept. 28, Oct. 28, and Nov. 29, 1652 
The English gain a victory over the Dutch fleet oflf Ports- 
mouth, taking and destroying 11 men-of-war and 30 
merchantmen. Van Tromp is the Dutch, and Blake 
the English admiral, . . . Feb. 10, 1653 

Again, near Portland, between the English and Dutch, the 

latter defeated, .... Feb. 18, 1653 

Again, off the North Foreland. The Dutch and English 
fleets are nearly 100 men-of-war each. Van Tromp 
commands the Dutch; Blake, Monk and Deane, the 
English. Six Dutch ships are taken, 11 are sunk, 
the remainder run into Calais roads, June 2, 1653 

Again, off the coast of Holland, the Dutch lose 30 men-of- 
war, and Admiral Van Tromp is kill(>d, July 31, 1653 
At Cadiz, when two galleons, worth 2,000.000 pieces of 

eight, are taken by the English, . . Sept. 16.56 

The Spanish fleet is vanquished, and then burnt in the 

harbor of Santa Cruz, by Blake, . . April, 16.57 

Between the English and French; 1.30 of the Bordeau.x 

fleet being destroyed by the Duke of York, Dec. 4, 1661 
The Duke of York [afterwards James II.,] defeats the 
Dutch fleet off Harwich; the Dutch admiral blown 
up with all his crew; 18 first class ships taken and 14 
destroyed, . . . . . June ,3, 1665 

The Earl of Sandwich takes 12 men-of-war and 2 Indian 

ships, ..... Sept. 4, 1665 

A contest maintained for four days between the Dutch and 
English fleets; the English losing 9, and the Dutch 
i5 ships, ..... June 14, 1666 

Decisive engagement fought at the mouth of the Thames 
between the Dutch and English, when the English 
gain a glorious victory; the Dutch losing 24 men- 
of-war, with 4 admirals and 4,000 officers and seamen 
killed, ..... July 26, 1666 

An English fleet of 16 sail, defeats a French fleet (jf .30, near 

Martinico, ...... 1667 



XXIV ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Off the coast of Holland; when Prince Rupert, on May 28, 

June 4, and Aug. 11, defeats D'Etrees and Ruyter, 1G73 

Several actions to the disadvantage of the Dutch, who 
agree to strike to the English colors in the British 
seas, ....... 1673 

Off Tangiers, battle between the English and Moors, last- 
ing 11 days, ...... 1C79 

Ofif Beachy-head; the English and Dutch being defeated by 

the French, .... June 30, 1G90 

The combined English and Dutch fleets gain a signal vie 
tory over the French fleet, near Cape La Hogue; 21 
of the largest French men-of-war being destroyed, 

May 19, 1692 

Off St. Vincent; the English and Dutch squadrons, under 

Admiral Rooke, are defeated by the French, June 10, 1693 

Off Carthagena, between Admiral Benbow and the French 

fleet, commanded by Admiral DuCasse, Aug. 19, 1702 

The English and Dutch fleets, under Sir George Rooke, 
engage and defeat the French fleet [having Spanish 
galleons in convoy] in the port of Vigo. They 
take 9 out of 13 galleons, laden chiefly with silver, 
and G men-of-war ; the other galleons, and 14 
men-of-war are destroyed, . . . Oct. 12, 1702 

In the Mediterranean, when Admiral Leake captures GO 

French vessels laden with provisions, . May 22, 1708 

The Spanish fleet of 27 sail is totally defeated by Sir George 

Byng, near Messina, .... Aug. 11, 1718 

Battle of Toulon; Matthews and Lestock engage the fleets 
of France and Spain. The victory is lost by a mis- 
understanding between the English admirals, . 1744 

Off Cape Finistere, the French fleet is taken by Admiral 

Anson, ...... May .3, 1747 

In the East Indies; the French are driven back to Pondi- 

cherry, ....... 1747 

Off Ushant, Admiral Hawke takes seven French men- 
of-war Oct. 14, 1747 

Admiral Hawke defeats the French fleet commanded by 
Conflans, in Quiberon Bay; and thus prevents a pro- 
jected invasion of England, . . Nov. 20, 17.^9 

Keppel takes 3 French frigates, and a fleet of merchant- 
men, Oct 9, 17G2 



MEMORABLE NAVAL ENGAGEMENTS. XXV 

Near Cape St. Vincent, between Admiral Rodney and 
Admiral Don Langara, the latter is defeated and 
taken prisoner, losing 8 ships, . . Jan. 8, 1780 

At St. Jago; Mens. Sutfrein is defeated by Commodore 

Johnston, ..... April 16, 1781 

Admiral Rodney defeats the French sailing to attack Ja- 
maica, takes 10 ships of the line, [1 being sunk, and 
3 blown up.] The French admiral. Count de Grasse, 
is sent a prisoner to England, . . April 12, 1782 

The British totally defeat the fleets of France and Spain, 

in the Bay of Gibraltar, . . Sept. l.^, 1782 

Off Cape St. Vincent; the Spanish fleet is defeated by Sir 

J. Jarvis; 4 line of battle ships captured, Feb. 14, 1797 

Unsuccessful attempt on Santa Cruz by Admiral Nelson, 

. July 24, 1797 

Off Camperdown where the Dutch are signally defeated by 
Admiral Duncan, lij ships of war, with the admiral 
[De Winter] being taken, . . Oct. 11, 1797 

Nile; Toulon fleet defeated by Sir Horatio Nelson, at 
Aboukir; 9 ships of the line are taken, 2 are ])urnt, 
and 2 escape, ..... Aug. I, 1798 

Gibraltar bay; engagement between the French and Brit- 
ish fleets; the Hanniljal, carrying 74 guns, is lost, 
July G, 1801 

Off Cadiz; Sir James Saumarcz obtains a victory over the 

French and Spanish fleets; 1 ship is captured, July 12, 1801 

Off Ferrol, Sir Robert Calder, with 1.5 sail, takes 2 ships, 
out of 20 sail of the combined French and Spanish 
fleets, July 22, 1805 

Off Trafalgar; (a memorable battle,) in which Lord Nelson 
defeats the fleets of France and Spain, and in which 
he receives his mortal wound, . Oct. 21, 1805 

Off Cape Ortugal, Sir R. Strachan, with 4 sail of British, 

captures 4 French ships of the line, . . Nov. 4, 1805 

In the West Indies; the French are defeated by Sir T. Duck- 
worth; 3 sail of the line taken, 2 driven on shore, Feb. G, 180G 

Sir John Borlaso Warren captures the French fleet under 

command of Admiral Linois, . . March 1.3, 180G 

Admiral Duckworth effects the passage of the Dardanelles, 

. Feb. 19, 1807 



XXVI ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

The Copenhagen fleet of 18 ships of the line, 15 frigates, 

and 31 other vessels, surrenders to Lord Catheart 

and Admiral Gambier, . . . Sept. 7, 1807 

U. S. frigate Chesapeake is fired upon by the British ship 

Leopard, for refusing to be searched, . . . 1807 

A Russian fleet of several sail, in the Tagus, surrenders 

to the British, .... Sept. 3, 1808 

U. S. frigate President vs. British sloop, Little Belt, May IG, 1811 
U. S. frigate Constitution captures British frigate Guer- 

riere, Aug. 13, 1812 

Captain Elliott captures two British frigates on Lake Erie, 

.'•.... Oct. 8, 1812 
U. S. sloop Wasp captures British sloop Frolic, Oct. 18; both 

vessels are captured by British 71, Poictiers, Oct. 20, 1812 
U. S. frigate United States, Captain Decatur, captures 

British frigate Macedonian, . . . 1812 

U. S. frigate Constitution, Cajitain Bainbridgc, captures 

British frigate Java, . . . Dec. .30, 1812 

U. S. frigate Hornet, Captain Lawrence, captures British 

ship Peacock, Captain Peake, . . Feb. 24, 1813 

The Chesapeake, United States frigate, captured by the 

British frigate Shannon, . . June 12, 1813 

Algiers is bombarded by Lord Exmouth, . Aug. 27, 181G 
In the Bay of Navarino; the British, French and Russian 

squadrons, defeat and annihilate the Turkish Navy, 

Oct. 20, 1827 

Action between the British ships Volage and Hyacinth and 

29 Chinese war junks, which are defeated, Nov. 3, 1839 
Bombardment and fall of Acre. The British squadron, 

under Admiral Stopford, achieve this triumph with 

trifling loss, while the Egyptians lose 2.000 killed 

and wounded, and 3,000 prisoners, . . Nov. 3, 1840 



LORD CHANCELLORS OR LORD KEEPERS 
OF ENGLAND. 



Thomas a Becket, 
Gr.oFFREY Plantagenet 
William Longchamp, 
Herbert, Archbishop of Canti 
Walter de Gray, 
Richard de Marisco, 
Ralph de Neville, 
Simon de Mont fort, 
Ranulph Briton, 
Silvester de Everdon, 
John Maunsel, . 
John de Lexington, 
Queen Eleanor, 
William Kilkenny, 
Henry de Wengham, 
Nicholas de Ely, 
Walter de Merton, 
Thomas de Cantilupe, 
Walter Giffard, 
Godfrey Giffard, . 
John de Chishull, 
Richard de Middleton 
Walter de Merton, 
Robert Burnel, 
John de Langton, 
William de Grenefield, 
William de Hamilton, 
Ralph de Baldock, 
John de Langton, 
Walter Reynolds, . 
John de Sandale, 



l>ui-y, 



about 



1154 
1181 
1189 
1199 
1206 
1214 
1227 
1244 
1244 
1244 
1246 
1249 
12r).3 
12r>4 
1255 
1256 
1261 
1265 
1265 
1266 
1268 
1269 
1272 
1274 
1292 
1304 
1.307 
1307 
1307 
1310 
1314 



XXVlll 



ENGLAND AND ITS IIULERS. 



John de Hotham, 
John de Salmon, 
Robert de Baldock, 
Adam de Oulton, 
John de Hotham, 
Henry de Burwash, 
John de Stratford, 
Rh:hard de Bury, 
Tvohkut de Stratford, 
John de Stratford, 
Sir Robert Bouchier, 
Sir Robert Parnyn(;i:, 
Robert Sadynoton, . 
John dr Offord, 
John de Thoresby, 
William de JjDDington, 
Simon de Lanoham, 
William op Wickham, . 
Sir Robert Thorpe, 
Sir John Knivet, 
Adam de Houghton, 
Sir Richard le S(;roi'e, 
William Courtenay, 
Robert de Braybroke, 
Michael de la Pole, 
Thomas de Arundel, 
William of Wickham, 
Thomas de Arundel, . 
Edmund Stafford, . 
John Searle, 
Cardinal Thomas Beaufoi 
Thomas Lon(;ley, 
Cardinal Thomas Beaufor 
Thomas de Arundel, . 
Cardinal Thomas Beaufoi; 
Thomas Lonoley, 
Bishop op Winchester, 
Archbishop Kempe, 
John Stafford, 
Lord Cardinal Kempe, 



1318 
1320 
1323 
1327 
1327 
1327 
1330 
13;M 
1337 
1340 
1340 
1341 
1343 
1345 
1349 
1356 
1363 
1367 
1371 
1372 
1377 
1378 
1381 
13S2 
i:383 
1386 
1389 
1391 
1396 
1399 
1403 
1405 
1410 
1412 
1413 
1U7 
1425 
1127 
1132 
1454 



LORD CHANCELLORS OR LORD KEEPERS. 



XXIX 



Earl of Salisbury, . 

William Warnflete, . 

George Neville, 

Robert Stillington 

Henry Bouchier, 

Lawrence Booth, 

John Alcock, 

John Russell, .- . • = 

Cardinal Morton, . 

Henry Deane, .... 

Archbishop Wareham, 

Cardinal Wolsey, .... 

Sir Thomas More, ..... 

Sir Thomas Audley, .... 

Thomas, Bishop of Ely, .... 

Lord Wriothesley, .... 

Lord Paulet St. John, .... 

Lord Rich, . . ■ • • 

Thomas Godrich, Bifhop of Ely, 

Stephen (tAKniNER, Bishoj) of Winchester, 

Nicholas, A rc-hbishop of Vi)rk, 

Sir Nicholas Bacon, .... 

Sir Thomas Bromley, .... 

Sir Christopher Hatton, 

Sir John Puchering, .... 

Sir Thomas Egerton, afterward Lonl Ellesmere, 
Reappointed l)y James IV., . 

Sir Francis Bacon, afterward Lord Verulam, 

J. Williams, Bishop of Lincoln, . 

Sir Thomas Coventry, afterward Lord Coventry, . 

Sir John Finch, . . • • 

Sir Edward Lyttleton, afterward Lord Lyttleton, 

Sir Richard Lane, L. K., . 

In Commission, ..•••• 

Sir Edward Herbert, .... 

Sir Edward Hyde, Afterward Earl of Clarendon, 

Sir Orlando Bridgeman, L. K., . 

Earl of Shaftesbury, . . . . • 

Sir Heneage Finch, afterward Earl of Nottingham, 

Sir F. North, L. K., afterward Lord Guilford, 



1454 
14.56 
1460 
1467 
147.3 
147,3 
1477 
1483 
14B7 
15(K) 
15C)2 
1515 
1529 
1533 
1.534 
1545 
1.547 
1.547 
1.551 
1.5.53 
15.56 
1559 
1579 
1587 
1.592 
1.596 
1603 
1617 
1621 
1625 
1640 
1641 
1645 
1649 
1653 
. 1660 
1667 
. 1672 
1673 
. 1682 



XXX ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Sir George Jeffreys, Lord Jeffreys, . . . 1685 
In Commission, Sir J. Maynard, and other Commis- 
sioners, ....... 1690 

Sir John Trevors, Sir William Rawlinson and Sir 

George Hutchins, L. K., .... 161)0 

Sir John Somers, afterward Lord Somers, Commissioner, 1093 

Sir Nathan Wright, L. K., . . . . 1700 

Lord Cowper, L. K., . . . . . 1705 

In Commission, Sir J. Trevor and otliers, Commissioners, 1710 

Lord Harcourt, ...... 1710 

Lord Cowper, L. K., . . . . . . 1714 

In Commission, Sir R. Tkacy and others. Commissioners, 1718 

VisoouNT Parker, afterward earl of Macclesfield, . 1718 

In Commission. Sir J. Jkkyll and others, Commissioners, 1725 

Sir Peter Kinc;, L. K., afterward Lord Kin^^ . . 1725 

Lord Talbot, 1733 

Philip, Lord Hardwicke, ..... 17.37 

In Commission, Sir J. Willes and others. Commissioners, 17.56 

Sir Robert Henley, afterward Lord Henley, . . 1757 

Charles Pratt, Lord Camden, .... 1766 

Hon. Charles Yorke; took office Jan. 18, died next day, 1770 
In Co.mmission, Sir S. S. S.mvthk and others. Commis- 
sioners, ....... 1770 

Henry Bathurst, Lord Apsley, succeeded as Earl Bath- 

urst, ....... 1771 

Lord Thurlow, ....... 1778 

In Commission, Lord Loughborough and others. Commis- 
sioners, ....... 1783 

Lord Thurlow, ....... 1783 

In Commission, Sir J. Eyre and others. Commissioners, 1792 

Lord Loughborough, afterward Earl Rosslyn, . . 1793 

Lord Eldon, ....... 1801 

Lord Erskine, ....... 1806 

Lord Eldon, ..... . 1807 

Lord Lyndhurst, ...... 1827 

Lord Brougham, ...... 18.30 

Lord Lyndhurst, ...... 18.34 

In Commission, Sir C. C. Pepys and others, Commissioners, 18,35 

Lord Cottenham, ...... 18.36 

Lord Lyndhurst, ...... 1841 



LORD CHANCELLORS OR LORD KEEPERS. 



XXXI 



Lord Cottenham, ...... 

In Commission, Lord Langdale and others, Commis- 
sioners, . . . . . . . 

Sir Thomas Wilde, afterward Lord Truro, . 

Sir Edwin Sl'oden, afterward Lord St. Leonards, 

Robert Mousey Rolfe, afterward Lord Cranworth, 

Sir Frederick Thesiger, afterward Lord Chelmsford, 

John, Lord Campbell, 

Richard Bethel, Lord Westbury 

Lord Cranworth, 

Lord Chelmsford, 

Lord Cairns, 

Lord Hatherley, 

Earl of Selborne, . 

Earl Cairns, 

Earl op Selborne, . 

Lord Herschel, 

Lord Halsbury, who at present holds the position. Jan 
uary, 1892, 



1846 

1850 
1850 
18.52 
18.52 
18.58 
1859 
18G1 
18G5 
1866 
1868 
1868 
1872 
1873 
1880 
1886 

1886 



XXXll 



ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 



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CELT AND ROMAN. 

FROM B. C. 500 TO A. D. 450. 

Geologists have shown clearly that Great Britain 
was not always an island, but long centuries ago 
formed part of the continent. This was many thou- 
sand years before history gives, us a glimpse of it. 
Its climate was then like that of Greenland now, 
affordino- a home for the reindeer, the mammoth, the 
wild horse and other animal inhabitants of polar 
regions. Passing the rough stone age when man, 
little better than the brute, existed in caves in utter 
degradation, we reach the age of polished stone, in 
which dwelt a higher race, who took possession of 
Britain, then an island. They brought with them the 
knowledge of grinding stone, and forming from it 
hatchets, chisels, spears and other weapons and uten- 
sils. They began to raise cereals, and brought from 
other countries the ox, sheep, horse and dog. 

We come next to the bronze age when men knew 
how to melt and mingle copper and tin, making the 
bronze axe and the bronze sword. With these they 
invaded Britain, and the superiority of their weapons 
enabled them about the year 500 B. C. to conquer the 
island. They lived in settlements under chiefs, and 
had a form of government of a rude kind. Their 

1 



ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 



villages were built above ground ; their dwellings were 
like the Avigwams of the Indians, built of wood 
chinked in with clay, with pointed reed-covered roofs, 
with an opening to let out the smoke and let in the 
sun. The villages were defended by moats, palisades 
and felled trees. They kept sheep and cattle. They 
raised grain which they deposited in winter in under- 
ground store-houses. They attained considerable skill 
as workers in gold, of which they made necklaces and 
bracelets, as well as in the manufacture of Avoolen 
cloth of various textures and brilliant colors. They 
spoke the same Celtic language throughout the 
island. 

Pythias, a famous Greek navigator, visited Britain 
about 300 B. C. He says he saw plenty of grain 
growing, and that the farmers gathered their sheaves 
at harvest into large barns, where, on account of the 
uncertainty of the weather, they threshed it under 
cover. He also says that the farmers of that day had 
learned to make beer, of Avhicli they were very fond. 

The southern part of the island was famous for its 
tin mines, and the inhabitants carried on a brisk trade 
in their products with merchants of the Mediterranean. 
Indeed, tradition says that King Hiram, the friend of 
Solomon, obtained his supplies of tin from the British 
isles. About the year 300 B. C. a Greek writer spoke 
of the country as then well known, calling it Albion, 
or the "Land of the White Cliffs." 

Iron began to be used about one hundred years 
after, and rings of it were employed for money in the 
northern part of the island. Gold and silver coins. 



CELT AND EOMAN. 6 

however, were even as early as that day used in the 
southern parts of Britain. 

The religion of the primitive Britons was as rude 
as their environment. They had some dim faith 
in an overruling providence and in a life beyond 
the grave. Their priests were Druids, who wor- 
shiped the sun and moon. They dwelt in the depths 
of the forests, where they raised their altars and acted 
as prophets, judges and teachers. They not only 
judicially decreed the guilt of an offender, but acted 
as ministers of justice in his punishment. Lucan 
declared that he envied them " their belief in the 
indestructibility of the soul, since it banished the 
greatest of all fears, the fear of death." Coesar says, 
" they tlid much inquire, and liand down to the youth 
concerning the stars and their motions, concerning 
the magnitude of the earth, concerning the nature of 
things, and the might and power of the immortal 
gods.'' 

Says Montgomery, " It is well to bear in mind that 
all the progress which civilization has since made is 
built on the foundations which they slowly and pain- 
fully laid during unknown centuries of toil and strife. 
It is to them that we owe the taming of the dog, the 
horse and other domestic animals, the first working of 
metals, the beginning of agriculture and mining, and 
the establishment of many salutary customs." 

In the year 55 B. C. Britain became acquainted 
with a higher civilization through the ambition of 
Julius Csesar, who three years before had organized 
his first campaign against the tribes north of the 



4 ENGLAND AND ITS EULERS. 

Alps, determined to crush a power always dangerous 
to Rome. He sought in that Avay to promote his 
military fame, and to gain moneys to sustain his 
armies, and maintain and increase his power. Late in 
the summer he resolved to subdue Britain, because it 
had been, as he says, always an ally of Gaul. From 
the place now known as Boulogne, he embarked with 
a force of about 8,000 men, in eighty small vessels, 
crossed the channel and landed near Dover. Here he 
was met by a considerable force, which was soon 
routed. A few weeks after, having accomplished this 
only, he returned to Gaul. 

The next year he made a second invasion, with a 
much larger force, and penetrated the country to a 
short distance north of the Thames, but })efore the 
autumn gales made navigation dangerous he re- 
embarked for the continent. The only result of his 
invasion was a knowledge of the island, and a long 
train of captives carried as slaves to Bome. As 
Tacitus says: "He did not conquer Britain; he only 
shoAved it to the Bomans." 

The first really important invasion of Britain was 
ordered by the Emperor Claudius, A, D. 43. His 
forces met a brave and determined resistance, and it 
was tmly after nine years hard fighting that the 
Britons were subdued. Caractacus, their leader, in 
company with many prisoners, was taken in chains to 
Bome. He refused to beg for life or liberty. A. D. 52 
he was led in triumph through the streets of that 
great city, and as he calmly surveyed its splendor 
exclaimed: "Alas, is it possible that a nation possessed 



CELT AND EOMAN. 5 

of such magnificence should covet my humble cottage 
in Britain." The Emperor, struck with the dignity 
and manliness of his bearing, ordered him set free. 

The first Roman colony was planted at what is now 
Colchester, where was built a temple, and in it 
was placed a statue of the Emperor Claudius, which 
the soldiers worshiped as a representative of the 
Bom an State. 

One famous place the army had conquered, a little 
village on the Thames, consisting of a few huts known 
as Llyndin, or the Fort-on-the-Lake, which was pro- 
nounced by the Romans London, now the wealthiest 
and greatest of the world's cities. 

The destruction of the Druids, who constantly 
inflamed the nation to revolt, and who maintained firm 
resistance to the Roman authority because utterly 
ruinous to their own, soon became a necessity, and a 
war of extermination against them was organized. 
The work was thorough, a blow being struck at 
Druidism from which it never recovered. The priests 
were slain, their consecrated groves leveled to the 
ground, and their altars given to the flames. While 
Suetonius was engaged in his campaign against the 
Druids, Boadicea, wife of a native chieftain who had 
been treated with cruel in<lignity b}^ the Roman gov- 
ernor, A. D. 01, roused the tribes to revolt. They 
fell upon London and other cities, burned them and 
slaughtered many thousands of the inhabitants. Sue- 
tonius hastened back, fought a decisive battle near 
where St. PauFs cathedral now stands, resulting in 
the complete overthrow of the Britons and the death 



6 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

of the gallant Boadicea, who took her own life rather 
than fall into the hands of the relentless Romans. 

Soon after this Christianity made its way to Brit- 
ain. It is supposed that Sts. Peter and Paul, or some 
of their disciples, inspired by the command: "Go ye 
into all the world," then introduced the tenets of their 
great Master. The first church is said to have been 
erected at Glastonbury. "Here," says Fuller, "the 
converts watched, fasted, preached and prayed, having 
high meditations under a Ioav roof, and large hearts 
within narrow walls." Christianity spread, and as it 
began to grow common, representing " one Christ," 
and not the Roman Emperor, as the object of worship, 
it soon excited the hatred of the dominant race. 
Toward the end of the third century the Roman Em- 
peror Diocletian, resolved to stamp out the Christian 
belief, and inaugurated a system of persecution which 
pervaded every part of the empire. The first martyr 
in Britain was Alban, who refused to sacrifice to the 
Roman deities, and was beheaded. The Abbey of 
St. Albans, built five hundred years later, commemo- 
rates the event. 

The conquest of the island was not completed until 
the arrival of Julius Agricola, A. D. 78, who, uniting 
gentleness with valor, equity with firmness, gained 
the first real ascendency over the Britons. His fleets 
explored the coast and first discovered that Britain 
was an island. He built forts to resist the invasion 
of the Scots and Picts, and laid out roads. During 
the next three hundred years, which marked the 
period of Roman rule, forests were cleared, marshes 



CELT AND ROMAN. / 

drained, rivers banked in and bridged, and the soil so 
fertilized and enriched that the country became the 
most important grain producing province in the Em- 
pire. During this period too Avere built the walled 
towns Chester, London, Lincoln and York, with more 
than twenty others, which have since become centers of 
po[)ulation. London early became the commercial 
emporium, while York Av^as the military and civic 
capital. At York was stationed the famous Sixth 
Legion, Avhich remained there for more than three 
centuries, and there the governor resided; there too, 
in the fourth century, Constantine Avas proclaimed 
Emperor. 

It is Avorthy of note that so skilfully were their 
roads constructed, that modern engineers have been 
glad to adopt them as a basis for their Avork, and the 
four leading ones are still tlie foundation of numerous 
turnpikes in England, and are, for their perfect con- 
dition, the admiration of the traveller. 

The condition of the common people during Roman 
sovereignty was one of appalling slavery. Every 
farmer had to pay the government a third of all his 
farm could produce, a duty on all that he sold, besides 
a poll tax. The Roman governmeTiit Avas a vast system 
of organized oppression, undermining and impoverish- 
ing the country, and a yoke upon the Britons heavier 
than they could bear. AVhile the masters liA^ed in 
stately villas the mass of the native population were 
slaves, giving their toil to masters Avho repaid them 
only by the lash. 

But the inroads of the Goths and Huns brought 



8 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

relief at last. Kome, harassed by the barbarians, 
needed all her forces at home, and was compelled to 
withdraw her soldiers from Albion. The Emperor 
Honorius accordingly granted letters of discharge, 
and the Eomans left the. island, A. D. 410. 

The Eoman rule, resulting in the destruction of 
Druidism and the introduction of Christianity, was 
perhaps alone worth the suffering and oppression occa- 
sioned by it. 



SAXON AND DANE. 

A. D. 450 to A. D. lOGG. 

Four centuries of servitude and oppression had so 
subdued the native courage of the Britons, that when 
left by their Roman masters, they were utterly unable 
to cope with the Picts, the Scots and the Saxons. 
Their enemies burst in from every quarter and cut 
them down, "as reapers the ripe grain." To use their 
own words, in an appeal to Aetius, the consul, for 
help: "The barbarians drove them to the sea and the 
sea drove them back to the barbarians." 

By the advice of Voltigern, a chief of Kent, they 
invited a band of Saxons, to form an alliance with 
them against the Picts and Scots. The invitation was 
accepted, and in 449 they crossed the channel in 
three warships under the command of Hengist and 
Horsa. They settled at first in the island of Thanet, 
near the mouth of the Thames; soon put an end to 
the ravages of the Picts, and at the same time helped 
themselves to the finest parts of Kent. Other Saxons, 
hearing of their success, seized the county of Sussex. 
The natives were exterminated or enslaved, and the 
Saxons soon became masters of Kent, Sussex, Wessex, 
Essex and Middlesex. Finally, from Angeln came a 
tribe of Angles who took possession of Eastern Brit- 

9 



10 ENGLAND AND ITS KULEES. 

ain. Eventually they gained control of the greater 
part of the island, and gave it the name of Angleland 
or England. Their success, however, was the result 
of hard fighting and repeated battles, in which they 
were sometimes, but not often, checked. For nearly 
eighty years the country was a scene of continuous 
warfare and l)loodshed. 

It was only after a contest of nearly 150 years that 
the Saxons gained control of the whole country, which 
they divided into seven independent state.'i, called the 
Saxon Heptarchy, which were designated as follows: 

1. Cantia or Kent, founded by Hengist (J:57), 
comprised Kent. 

2. South Saxony, by Ella (490), Sussex and Surrey. 

3. West Saxony or Wessex, by Cedric (519), 
Hants, Berks, Wilts, Dorset, Somerset and Devon- 
shire. 

4. East Saxony, by Ercenwin (527), Essex, Mid- 
dlesex and a part of Herts. 

5. Northumbria, by Ida (547), Northumberland, 
Cumberland, AVestmoreland, Durham, Yorkshire, Lan- 
caster and a part of Scotland. 

6. East Anglia, by Uff'a (575), Norfolk, Suffolk 
and Cambridge. 

7. Mercia, by Cridda (582), all the middle coun- 
ties: Cheshire, Stafford, Derby, AVarwick, Worcester, 
Shropshire, Hereford, Gloucester, Oxford, Bucking- 
ham, Bedford, Huntingdon, Northampton, Rutland, 
Leicester, Nottingham, Liiicoln and a part of Herts. 

It is an interesting fact that the bounds of some of 
these counties remain to-day practically unchanged. 



SAXON AND DANE. 11 

Saxon oppression caused many of the Britons to seek 
refuge among the mountain fastnesses of Wales and 
Cornwall, while others fled to the western coast of 
France, giving to it the name of Bretagne, a name 
which it still retains. 

During the above period, Arthur, prince of the 
Silures or Welsh, is said to have proved a formidable 
opponent to the Saxons, defeating them in twelve 
battles, and checking for many years the progress of 
their arms in the west of Britain. 

The poverty of the Saxons had now become so 
great that they sold their own children into Roman 
slavery. A number of them, ex})osed for sale in the 
Roman forum, attracted the attention of a famous 
monk named Gregory. He asked, "from Avhat country 
do these come.'' "They are Angles," was the reply. 
"Not Angles but Angels," was the monk's answer; 
and he resolved that if he ever had the power he 
would send missionaries to convert them. In 590 he 
became the Roman pontifiP, and in 597 he sent Augus- 
tine upon this mission, with a band of forty monks. 
They landed where Hengist and Horsa had disem- 
barked a century and a half before. Ethelbert, King 
of Kent, had married Bertha, a convert to Christianity. 
The monk had therefore a courteous reception from 
the King, whom he converted with ten thousand of 
his subjects, all being baptized within twelve months. 
Au<yustine became the first Archbishop of Canter- 
bury, and erected a monastery for the training ot 
his missionaries and ministers. Monasteries from this 
time increased throughout the land. They were use- 



12 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

ful as schools for the diffusion of secular as well as 
religious knowledge. Each had its library, and the 
monks engaged iu manual toil, in the cultivation of 
the land, and in the study of floriculture and horti- 
culture. As preservers of knowledge, by the trans- 
lation of the Latin classics, as teachers of religion, as 
promoters of peace, the influence of the monks was 
most beneficent. The church, too, exerted a most 
important social power. It took the side of the weak, 
the suffering and the oppressed; it sliielded the slave 
from ill treatment; it gave him Sunday, prayed for 
his emancipation, and urged upon his masters the 
right of personal freedom. 

Through the influence of St. Augustine, Sebert, 
King (^f Essex, was also converted. He pulled down 
the temple of Apollo at Westminster, and built a 
church, dedicated to St. Peter, on the spot where the 
venerable Westminster Abbey now stands, though it 
is still known in the records of the Church of England 
by its original name of St. Peter's. In 010 he de- 
stroyed the pagan temple of Diana, and built on its 
site the original cathedral of St. Paul, thus forever 
commemorating the self-sacrificing labors of the two 
great apostles wlio first preached Christ in Britain. 
To Sebert also belongs another glory, that of having 
founded the University of Cambridge, in the year 044. 

Each of the seven kingdoms composing the Hept- 
archy was governed by its own king until 828, when 
Egbert, King of Wessex, after a series of victories, 
brought all the sovereignties of England into subjec- 
tion, and assumed the title of " King of the English." 



SAXON AND DANE. 13 

He began to reign in AVessex in the year 800, subdued 
Kent in 819, Essex in 827, and was crowned at Win- 
chester, then the capital of England. The Danes, 
who had invaded the island in 787, were totally routed 
at Hengesdown, in Cornwall, in the year 855. Eg- 
bert, after a prosperous administration, died A. D. 836, 
and was buried in Winchester. During his reign, 
characterized by so much vigor and splendor, the 
Britons for the first time had a uniform language. 

Ethel wolf, the eldest son of Egbert, succeeded 
him. He was a monk at the time of his father's 
death, but married Osberga, daughter of his cup- 
bearer, by whom he had four sons. These mounted 
the throne in succession. Ethelwolfs reii^n was a 
period of continual struggles against tlie Danes. He 
first granted tithes to the clergy, and paid the yearly 
tribute to the Pope, which is still called Peter's pence. 
He died at Stainbridge, in Essex, in 857, and Avas 
buried at Steyning, in Sussex. 

He was succeeded by Ethelbald, whose brief 
reign of three years was marked by no event worthy 
of note. He died in 800, and was buried at Sher- 
borne, in Dorsetshire. 

After him came Ethelbert, whose reign was char- 
acterized only by weakness, and his inability to cope 
with the Danes, who ravaged his territory, and com- 
pelled him to pay tribute. 

The reign of his brother and successor Ethelred, 
was a period of constant warfare. He fought in a 
single year nine battles with the Danes. He died 
at Surrey A. D. 871, and was buried at Wimborne 



14 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

in Dorsetshire. He made liis brother Alfred an 
Earl, which is the first mention of that title in his- 
tory. 

From Egbert descended not only the present 
monarch, but almost every sovereign of England. 
One of the greatest of these was Alfred, his grand- 
son, who came to the throne in 871. His memory 
comes to us full of fragrance, because of his un- 
selfish devotion to the welfare of his subjects. A 
brave man, yet gentle, he put aside every personal 
ambition in order to secure for them peace, good 
government and education. When he ascended the 
throne, the country Avas embroiled in a fierce con- 
test with the Danes. Dui'ing the first eight years 
of his reign he was continually worsted ])y them, 
until at one time they had entire possessicm of the 
island. He was obliged to assume the dress of a 
servant, and engage himself to a cow-herd. It was 
at this time that he forgot to turn the cakes which 
the cow-herd's Avife had entrusted to his care (being 
busy with his bow), and incurred her well known 
reproof. In 877 he built a fort at Athelly, and 
was joined b}' many of the nobles; he soon had at 
his command an aiiny. and again ventured against 
the Danes, but having no one brave enough or 
trustworthy enough to reconnoiter their forces, he 
went himself into their camp, disguised as a harper. 
When Guthrum, the Danish General, heard him 
play, he entertained him for several days. He 
found the Danes full of confidence, giving their time 
to dancing, singing and feasting, certain that the 



SAXON AND DANE. 15 

Britons could not mnster an army. Stealing 
from the camp, lie rallied his subjects in Selwood 
forest, and then falling unexpectedly upon the 
marauders, obtained a complete victory. He gave 
freedom to his prisoners, a strange thing in that 
day, and allowed them to remain in England. They 
promised to become Christians, and settled in East 
Anglia, Northumberland (A. D. 880). Their 

leader, Guthrum was baptized, and bound by a sol- 
emn oath at Wedmore, in Somerset, to main- 
tain peace. This had in fact saved little more than 
AVessex, but it broke the spell of terror, turned 
the tide of invasion, and gave to the land peace for 
many years. Alfred gave these years to the improve- 
ment of his country. He framed a code of laws 
which is the groundwork of the present system of 
jurisprudence. He divided England into counties 
and hundreds, established a militia and the trial by 
jury, founded the University of Oxford (880), at 
the request of the historian Asser (887-909), and 
is credited with having invented a method of meas- 
uring time l)y candles. He encouraged literature and 
science. He built the first ships constructed in Eng- 
land and for this purpose he was obliged to import 
foreign shipwrights, who in turn taught the English 
their craft. When his ships had been built, he found 
his own men could not manage them and was 
obliged to obtain sailors from abroad to work them 
and instruct the natives in the art of navigation. 
In time he overcame all tliese difficulties, and had 
a good navy manned by British seamen. 



16 ENGLAND AND ITS IIULERS. 

The Danes, after twelve years peace, again dis- 
turbed the country. This time they came with a 
fleet of three hundred and thirty -one ships under 
Hastings, and landing in Kent, made Appledore 
their headquarters. Before Alfred could conquer 
them, a long and bitter contest ensued. When at 
last they were overcome and the wife and children 
of Hastings had been taken prisoners, Alfred sur- 
rendered them, but only on the condition that the 
leader and his people should leave the kingdom. 

Alfred died at Farringdon, in Berkshire (901), 
at the age of fifty-two. No sovereign of Britain 
has left a fairer fame. None was more beloved by 
his subjects or more respected by his enemies. 
While oblivion, like a cloud, has fallen on the mem- 
ory of many other monarchs, the record of his unself- 
ish charity still shines with undimmed lustre, after 
the lapse of over a thousand years. Many have sur- 
passed him in learning and in wealth, but few, if 
any, have equaled him in the grandeur of his life. 
As a translator of Bseda's history, the " Consolation " 
of Boethius, the fables of J^sop into Saxon, as well 
as the rendering of other classics, he gave to the 
world its first English prose. The mighty roll of 
England's literature begins with the translations of 
Alfred, Avhicli constitute the earliest and most ven- 
erable monument of Teutonic wordcraft. Over his 
career all writers and readers of English history 
love to linger. " Hee was the first lettered Prince 
wee had in England by whose meanes and encour- 
agement publique schooles had heere, eyther their 



SAXON AND DANE. 17 

reviving or beginning." — Danyels History, 1626. In 
1849 the people of Wantage, Berkshire, his native place, 
celebrated the thousandth anniversary of his birth. 

Alfred's issue consisted of three sons and three 
daughters. The eldest son, Edmund, died during 
the life of his father, and without issue. The third, 
Ethelwald, gave his life to study, and became a 
monk. The second, Edward, succeeded to the 
throne in the year 901. He had hardly assumed the 
crown when Ethehvald, his cousin-german, son of 
King Ethelbert, the elder brother of Alfred, asserted 
his own title to it, and rallied forces to maintain it. 
The attempt, however, proved wholly unavailing, 
and the army of Ethelwald was soon entirely routed 
and overcome. Edward's entire reign was a period 
of continuous and successful warfare against the 
Northumbrians, the East Angles, the Five-Burg- 
hers, and the foreign Danes, who invaded the island 
from Normandy and Brittany. He also subdued 
the Scots, who were obliged to give him tokens of 
submission. Edward died in the year 925, when 
his kingdom devolved upon Athelstan (supposed to 
be his natural son by Ecqwina, a woman of humble 
origin), who was crowned with great splendor at 
Kingston. A league was formed against him by the 
Danes, Scots and other nationalities, then denizens 
of the island of Britain; but they were completely 
routed, and Constantine, King of Scotland, and five 
other kings were slain in the various battles which 
occurred (A. D. 938). 

Athelstan caused the Bible to be translated 



18 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

into the Saxon language, and a copy placed in 
each of the churches, and monastery chapels 
throughout his domain. For safety, it was fastened 
to its place by an iron chain. The Church at 
this time continued to urge the doctrine that all 
for whom Christ died are equal. The murder of a 
slave by his master, although no crime in the view 
of the State, was a sin for which 2:)enance was 
exacted. The bondsman was exempted from toil on 
Sunday. The slave trade was prohibited by law, 
and many slaves were given their freedom through 
the powerful preaching of the clergy, denouncing 
the sinfulness of human bondage. To encourage 
commerce, Atholstan issued an edict that every 
merchant who had made three voyages should be 
raised to the rank of Thane or Nobleman. At this 
period the higher class were the Thanes. The two 
other divisions of the community consisted of a 
middle class, Freemen or Ceorls, and a third desig- 
nated as slaves or villeins. U|)on the latter were im- 
posed all servile duties. The Earl of Warwick lived 
in this reign. He is celebrated for having, in the 
year 930, conquered in single combat, the giant 
Colbrand. Athelstan died at Gloucester in 94-1, and 
was buried at Malmesbury in Wiltshire. 

Edmund I, his brother, succeeded him as king, 
at the age of eighteen. The Danes again collected 
together, under the command of Anlass, but they 
were soon subdued, and the nation looked forward 
to a peaceful reign. This ex])ectation was suddenly 
ended by the assassination of the king, who while 



SAXON AND DANE. 19 

sitting at supper in Pucklecliurch, Gloucestersliire 
(94:7), was stabbed by a noted robber named Leolf. 
Edmund was buried at Glastonbury. He left two 
infant sons, Edwy and Edgar, but they being too 
young to assume the crown, Edred, his brother, 
son of Edward, was chosen king. He rebuilt Glas- 
tonbury Abbey, and Dunstan (924-988), its abbot, 
obtained so great an influence over him that he 
managed the affairs of the kingdom, including even 
the expenditure of its revenues. Edred died of a 
quinsy (955), and was buried at Winchester. 

Edwy, the eldest son of Edmund I., succeeded his 
uncle at the age of sixteen. He married Elgiva, a 
princess of great beauty, whose close relationship 
to him highly incensed Dunstan and tlie clergy. 
They caused her banishment to Ireland, and her 
face to be disfigured with red hot irons, and sub- 
sequently were accused of having murdered her 
upon her return to England, so great was their fear 
of her iufluence over the King. They also incited 
his brother to rebel. This unfortunate monarch 
died of grief (959), and was buried at AVinchester, 

Edgar, surnamed the peaceable, succeeded his 
brother. He gave up a tax levied by Athelstan upon 
the AVelsh, in exchange for a yearly tribute of three 
hundred wolves' heads, Avhich resulted in soon clear- 
ing the country of that animal. Edgar was so vain of 
his power that, when residing at Chester, he com- 
pelled eight princes to row his barge on the river 
Dee, in token of subjection. Among these was a Scot- 
tish King. Historians of Scotland, however, indig- 



20 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

iiaiitly deny this. Edgar increased the navy to three 
hundred and sixty ships, and erected many monas- 
teries. He died (975), and was buried at Glastonbury. 

Edward II., surnamed the Martyr, son of Edgar, 
was crowned at Kingston. By a plot of his mother- 
in-law Elfrida, he was stabbed in the back (978) 
whilst drinking at Corfe Castle, in Dorsetshire. 

Ethelred II., surnamed the Unready, was half- 
brother to Edward II. He gave the Danes, who har- 
assed the kingdom, large sums of money, levied by a 
tax of a shilling on each hide of land, called Danegelt 
or Dane money. This was the first land tax ever 
levied in England. 

A large number of Danish people had by this 
time settled in England, and the King conceived the 
idea of murdering all of them. He made the attempt 
in 1002, and to avenge this massacre, Sweyn, King 
of Denmark, sailed for England, and carried on there 
during the following ten j-ears a desolating war, 
at length compelling Ethelred to take refuge in Nor- 
mandy (1012). Sweyn then usurped the throne, and 
was the first Dane who obtained sovereignty in Eng- 
land. He was proclaimed King without opposition. 
After a short reign he died at Gainsborough, in Lin- 
colnshire (1011), and was succeeded by his son Canute. 

Ethelred was restored in 1015, but death . closed 
his turbulent reign the next year, and he was buried 
at St. Paul's, London. He married Emma, sister of 
Eichard, Duke of Normandy, and from this may be 
dated the English Norman connection. 

Canute, as successor to his father, Sweyn, was 



SAXON AND DANE. 21 

acce])ted by the Danish fleet as king, but Edmund at 
this time again appeared to oppose him, and many 
battles were fought between the two kings, with varied 
success. Some writers state they fought a duel in the 
island of OJney, in the Severn, and at its close agreed 
to divide the kingdom, Edmund taking that part south 
of the Thames. His death, however, occurred shortly 
after, and left Canute sole monarch. 

In lOlG Edmund II.. the eldest surviving son of 
Ethelred, surnamed Ironsides, from his great valor, 
claimed succession. He was crowned at Kings- 
ton, while Canute was chosen king by another part of 
the nation. Ethelred reigned only six months, being 
murdered at Oxford by Duke Edric, and Avas buried at 
Glastonbury, thus leaving Canute in 1017 without a 
rival claimant to supreme sovereignty. Canute, sur- 
named the Great, was cruel and despotic in the begin- 
ning of his reign. He banished the children of Ethel- 
red, and imposed heavy taxes; but he grew more 
mild and just when fully established in his dominions. 
He became the most powerful monarch in Europe; 
and, having subdued Norway and Sweden, assumed 
the title of King of England, Norway, Denmark and 
Sweden. 

In the height of his glory his courtiers treated him 
as if nothing was beyond his power, Canute, being 
then at Southampton, to offer his subjects a lesson in 
humility, seated himself by the seashore as the tide 
was rising:, and in a loud voice bade the waves retire. 
He feigned to wait some time for their submission; 
but as the sea begfan to wash him with its waves he 



22 ENGLAND AND ITS HULERS. 

rebuked his flatterers by observing: "There is only 
one Omnipotent wlio can say to the ocean ' Thus far 
shalt thou come, and no farther.' " After this circum- 
stance he never wore his crown. He married Emma, 
the widow of Ethelred, and after a distinguished reign 
died at Shaftesbury in 1036, and was buried at Win- 
chester. 

Harokl I., surnamed Harefoot, from his swiftness 
in running, the son of Canute by his first mar- 
riage, succeeded to the throne. Alfred, Ethelred's 
• son, was seized by some of the King's attendants and 
cruelly murdered. Harold, after an unimportant rule, 
died at Oxford in 1039, and was buried at Winchester. 

Hardicanute, or Canute the Hardy, succeeded his 
half-brother, whose remains he caused to be disinterred, 
his head cut off, and his body thrown into the Thames, 
as a weak revenge for the murder of Alfred. Drunk- 
enness at a marriage feast in Lambeth, in 1041, 
caused his death He was buried at Winchester. 
With him ended the Danish succession, which had 
usurped the throne for twenty-five years. 

Edward III., surnamed the Confessor because 
of his piety, the surviving son of Ethelred, re- 
stored the Saxon line. William, Duke of Nor- 
mandy, paid him a visit, and Edward is said to have 
promised him the crown. He repealed the tax of 
Danegelt, and was the first king that touched for the 
King's evil, a general belief then, as for centuries 
after existing, that the touch of a king would cure it. 
He married Earl Godwin's daughter Editha. He re- 
built Westminster Abbey. After a reign passed in 



SAXON AND DANE. 23 

prayer and good works lie died January 5, 1006, and 
was buried in his own Abbey, where his bones were 
enshrined in a golden casket set with precious stones. 
The celebrated Macbeth lived during a part of this 
reign. He usurped the Scottish throne by killing 
Duncan (1039), but was himself killed at Lunfanan, 
in Aberdeenshire, by Siward, Earl of Northumberland. 
Harold II., eldest son of Godwin, Earl of Kent, 
and grandson, by his mother, of Canute, seized on the 
throne, and defeated at York his brother Tosti and 
the King of Norway, who opposed his title, both of 
whom were left dead on the field. William, Duke of 
Normandy, landed at Pevensey, in Sussex, and ob- 
tained a decided victory over Harold near Hastings, 
October 14, 100(3. Harold was slain by an arroAv 
piercing his left eye, thus terminating the Anglo- 
Saxon goverment, which had continued, except the 
short interval of Danish sovereignty, for over six hun- 
dred years. The battle of Hastings took place oidy 
uiueteeu days after Harold's victory over his brother. 



HISTORICAL MEMORANDA OF THE SAXON LINE. 

449-106G. 

The influence of the Eoman Church at this time 
was most salutary. She had in the sixth century 
converted the island to Christianity, and until the 
ninth, she was the center of light, the conservator 
of learning, the school (primitive, to be sure), of 
painting, sculpture and of science. Her monks sed- 
ulously cultivated the arts of peace, were skilled in 



24 ENGLAND AND ITS RULEES. 

horticulture, agriculture and gardening, and their 
earnest sermons embodying, though in rude form, 
the great truths of Christianity, gave to the peo- 
ple the hope of a future life as compensation for the 
hardship of their earthly lot. As Macaulay says: 
" During that evil time the Church alone rode amid 
darkness and tempest on the deluge beneath which 
all the great works of power and wisdom lay en- 
tombed, bearing within her that feeble germ from 
which a second and more glorious civilization was 
to spring. " 

The invasion of England l)y the Dainsh pirates, 
who were distinguished by valor and strength, by 
unpitying ferocity, and hate to Christianity, almost 
destroyed this beneficent influence, keeping the 
island in a state of war for six generations, almost 
to the dawn of tlie Norman Conquest. The Church 
was prostrate at the feet of the invaders, cruel 
massacres being folhjwed by more cruel retribution; 
provinces were laid waste, convents plundered, cities 
razed to the ground, and England reduced almost 
to barbarism again. 

The rudeness with which justice Avas adminis- 
tered is shoAvn by the fact that if the evidence at a 
trial was not enough either to condemn or acquit a 
prisoner, an ordeal was used which was considered 
an appeal to Heaven. The accused was obliged to 
Avalk barefooted and blinded over heated plough- 
shares, placed at certain distances; to take a red hot 
iron in his hand; thrust his arm into boiling water, 
or he was thrown into a river, having his hands and 



SAXON AND DANE, 25 

feet tied. In either of these cases, if he escaped 
unhurt he was considered innocent; if not, he was 
deemed guilty, and led to punishment. Trial by 
combat Avas frequently employed, and continued in 
use for many centuries. 

In the seventh century was introduced masonry, 
and the art of making glass, by Benedict, a monk. 
This was also the period of primitive Gothic archi- 
tecture. 

The Anglo-Saxons were tall, robust and hand- 
some. Their environment compelled them to be 
bold and ready, making them masters of every 
manly exercise, able to keep their heads by their 
strong right arms. The Danes, or rather North- 
men, as they were often termed (for they consisted 
of Danes, Norwegians and Swedes), constituted a 
large portion of the inhabitants; they were as bold 
and intrepid as the Saxons, but more fierce and war- 
like. The language of the early inhabitants of 
Britain Avas Welsh, and identical in substance with 
that spoken in Wales to-day. The language of the 
Romans did not even modify it. 

Canute built churches wherever he had fought a 
battle, and appointed to them ministers; " AVho," 
as his edict read, " should, through the succeeding 
revolutions of ages, pray to God for the souls of 
those persons who had been slain there." These 
churches were of stone, and that at Aschendune 
(Ashdown), is especially mentioned in old chroni- 
cles as having been built " of stone and lime." 

St. Winifred, built a large number of churches 



26 ENGLAND AND ITS IIULERS. 

and among tlieni were the stone churches at York, 
Ripon and Hesham. 

The iTovernment was vested in the Kinsr and his 
council, called Witan, or wise men. Every freeman 
belonged to it, but in practice it was controlled by 
the monarch and a few of the more aml)itious of 
the nobles and clergy; and was the law-making 
power. It levied taxes and appointed the chief 
officers. 

The Feudal system prevailed, wlierel)y the King 
gave protection to the land owners, and the land 
owners to their tenants, but upon condition that 
each should render aid to his superior, in maintain- 
ing roads, bridges, fords, and also his presence 
and service in times of war. 

The Saxons had no cavalry. They always 
fought on foot, being armed with spears, javelins, 
battle-axes and swords, using oval-shaped shields 
to defend themselves. 

They were skilled in Avorking gold and silver, as 
well as illuminating manuscripts; while the women 
wove fine linen and woolen cloth. They also had 
made considerable progress in embroidering tapestry. 

The farming, except on monastery lands, was 
very crude. Grain was ground in stone hand-mills. 
Their chief merchandise was wool, lead, tin and 
slaves. Men and women were offered for sale with- 
out compunction, and parents did not hesitate to sell 
their own children. "Here," says a late historian, 
"in the midst of rude plenty, the Saxons or early 
English lived a life of sturdy independence. Theirs 



SAXON AND DANE. 27 

was not the nimble brain, for that was to come 
with another people, originally of the same race. 
Their mission was to lay the foundation; or, in 
other words, to furnish the muscle, grit, and endur- 
ance, without which the nimble brain is of little per- 
manent value." 

Justin Martyr, Christian Apologist, 103-107. 
Notable CcGsar, Caius Julius, B. C. 100-44. Agri- 
Persons. ^^^^^ Cuffiius Julius, A. D. 40-90. Adrian 
(or Hadrian) Ptelius, A. D, 7()-138, Roman Em- 
peror (117-138), who built the rampart, in 120, 
from the Tyne to Solway Frith. Severus, Lucius 
Septimus, 140-211, ll(mian Emperor, who built the 
"Pict's" wall; he died at York, then called Ebora- 
cum. Constantine I. (The Great), born at York 
274, died 337; Emperor of Rome 30(5-337. St. 
Alban, first Christian martyr in Britain, *285, 
Hengist, King of Kent, died 489. Horsa (brother 
of Hengist), f491. Ella (or Eli), King of Sussex, 
died 514. Cedric, King of Wessex, died 534. 
Ercenwin (or Erchenwin), King of East Saxony, 
died 587. Ida (or Idda), King of Northumberland, 
died 559. Uffa, King of East Anglia, died after 
578. Cridda, King of Mercia, died 594. These 
being the founders of the Heptarchy. 

Sebort (or Sebba), King of Essex, 003-093; 
Judith (wife of Ethelwolf), died 843. Guthrum, 
(or Guntrum, Danish general), died 809. Dunstan, 
925-988. Giddas, historian, born 493 or 514, died 

* This (lato uncertain, some name 303. Dates with a star indicate that 
the same is uncertain or approximate, 
t Very uncertain. 



28 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

572. Aldhelm (or Adelm), Bishop of Sherborne 
(705), first British poet, 656-700. Alcuin (Tutor 
of Charlemagne), 725-804. Asser, Bishop of Sher- 
borne (895), biographer of Alfred, 837-010. Bede 
(or Beda), historian, 673-735. Alfred (or Aleric), 
Abbot of Malmesbury, historian, died 000. 



1066 — 1154. 
THE NOKMAN CONQUEST. 

* (22) WILLIAM I. 
1066 — 1087. 

William I., surnamed the Conqueror, was born in 
Birth and 1027, at Falaise, in Normandy. He was 
Pareutage. ^j^^ g^^^ ^£ Robert, fifth Duke of Normandy. 
His mother, Arleites, was the daughter of a farmer. 
Prior to the English conquest he Avas called the 
Bastard. 

He was crowned at Westminster, London, Decem- 
Accession to ber 25, 1066, Alfred, Archbishop of York, 
le rono. performing the ceremony. He reigned 
until 1087. 

He married Matilda, sometimes called Maud, 
daughter of Baldwin V., Earl of Flanders. 

Marriage. 

She was crowned April 22, 1068, at West- 
minster. 

Robert, surnamed Curthose, from his short legs, 
was made Duke of Normandy by his 

Issue. -,1 1 1 

father, Richard, who was killed by a stag, 
in the New Forest; AVilliam, afterwards AVilliam II., 
of England. There were also four daughters, and a 
son Henry, afterwards Henry I. 

His death was caused by an accident. During 

* The figures in parenthesis before the name of each monarch indicates 
the order of succession from Egbert. 

29 



30 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

the desolating Avar lie had waged against Philip I., 
of France, he came before the town of 

Death. 

Mantes, which he had ordered burned. 
While riding among the smouldering ruins of the 
town, his horse stumbled and fell. From the injuries 
thus received he died September 9, 1087, at Hermen- 
trudes, near Rouen, France, to which place he had 
been removed immediately after the accident. He 
was buried at Caen. 

William the Conqueror was below medium stature, 
Pers u 1 A tiouipactly built, with broad, square shoul- 
pearanco aud dcrs. Later in life he became very corpulent ; 

but at the time of his landing in England 
Avas a man of such w(mderful physical strength that 
no one of his own stature could wield his arms or 
bend his bow, while his personal courage equaled 
his strength. At the battle of Hastings he offered 
to trust the fortune of his cause to single com- 
bat with Harold II, who feared to accept the 
challenge. On the battlefield he was always with the 
advance. A romantic story is told of him, that illus- 
trates the stern character of the age. During the re- 
volt of his son Ilo]>crt in Normandy in 1077, William 
besieged the castle of Gerberoi. AVJiile the siege Avas 
in progress Robert engaged a knight enveloped in 
full armor. After a severe struggle he unhorsed his 
antagonist, and was al)out to folloAv up his advantage 
Avhen accident disclosed the fact that his oi)ponent 
was his father. The tears and entreaties of his mother 
finally effected a reconciliation. 

" The very spirit of the ' sea wolves,' " says one 



THE NOltMAN CONQUEST. 31 

historian, "who had so long lived on the pillage 
of the world, seemed embodied in his gigantic form, 
his enormous strength, his savage countenance, his 
desperate bravery, the fury of his wrath, the ruthless- 
ness of his revenge." Even his enemies said, "that 
no knight under heaven was William's peer." But he 
had the Northman's cruelty, and at the close of his 
greatest victory he refused Harold's body a grave. 
" So stark and fierce was he," says an English chroni- 
cler, " that none dared resist his will." 

After the battle of Senlac he proceeded to London, 
Notable which suiTendered at once. His unquestioned 

empire was confined to so much of the 
island as lay east of a line stretched from Norwich to 
Dorsetshire. No change was made in law or custom, 
and the privileges of London were recognized by 
royal writ still preserved among the City's archives. 
Peace and order were restored, and the soldiery sub- 
jected to the severest discipline. The kingdom indeed 
seemed so tranquil that in a few months William left 
England in the charge of his brother Odo, Bishop of 
Bayeux, and his minister William Fitz-Osbern, and 
went to Normandy, Kevolts, however, soon arose 
throughout the kingdom, which required his imme- 
diate return, and which by his vigorous and prompt 
action were speedily subdued. 

But a more formidable issue was soon to be met, 
when, in 1()()S, the King of Denmark invaded the 
country, receiving aid from all Northern, Western and 
Southern England. So ably had the uprising been 
planned, and so well the secret ke[)t, that William 



32 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

while hunting in the forest of Dean, heard tliat York 
was taken, and the three thousand Normans, who 
formed its garrison, slain. In an outburst of wrath 
he swore by "the splendor of God" to avenge himself 
on the North. He kept his promise with terrible 
severity, wasting with fire and sword the insurgent 
district, and so ravaging the coasts with fire that he 
reduced them to utter desolation, leaving no tempta- 
tion to the Danes to again attack them. An historian, 
" William of Malmesbury," who wrote only sixty years 
later, tells of the unbounded license given to the sol- 
diers, of their brutality, and the devastation they 
wrought by fire and sword. He says: "From York to 
Durham not one iidiabited village remained. Fire, 
slaughter and devastation had made it a vast desert, 
which remains to this day." The King's vengeance 
complete, he returned wdth his army in the severity 
of the winter to Yojk and Chester, and attacked a 
desperate band of patriots gathered round an out- 
huved leader. Hereward, the last of the Saxon chief- 
tains, at Ely. But after a more stubborn resistance 
than he had yet encountered, Ely w^as surrendered, and 
William became King of England by right of conquest. 
But he knew that his sovereignty, born of the sword, 
must be kept by the sword. He confiscated, to give 
to his own soldiers, manors and farms in Kent and 
in other regions, whose owners had conspired against 
him, and in return for the gifts the recipients became 
his vassals, bound to respond to any call for aid, and 
obliged at a moment's notice to come armed and 
equipped at the command of the sovereign. But 



THE NORMAN CONQUEST. 33 

the King, warned l)y his experience in Normandy, 
to prevent the concentration of power in the hands of 
the nobles, divided his land-grants, so that no large 
possession was held by one person in any single 
shire. 

Nothing, however, can justify William's continued 
rapine. Upon his death-bed his conscience stung 
him bitterly, and he directed restitution to be made 
for the wrongs he had committed. But this late re- 
pentance did not save him from fierce denunciation, 
even at the hour he was being laid in the tomb. The 
Bishop of Evreux, the Norman prelate who officiated, 
had pronounced an eulogy upon the dead king when 
a voice from among the spectators cried out: "He 
whom you have praised was a robber. This very spot 
was the site of my father's house, of which he Avas 
unjustly deprived to build your church, and I summon 
the departed before the Divine tribunal to answer for 
this tyranny." 

A late historian says that the Bishop officiating 
declined to commit King William's remains to the 
grave until full restitution had been made for acts of 
wrong and robbery complained of. 

The reformation of the priesthood and the immu- 
nities tendered to the Jews, who became the money 
merchants of England and added much to its wealth, 
marked the earliest years of this reign. William's 
rule was stern, l)ut gave peace to the land. It is re- 
markable that so stern a warrior was so averse to shed 
blood by process of law. To his honor be it said that 
but one execution occurred during his reign. And 



34 ENGLAND AND ITS RULEKS. 

still more honorable to liim was an edict abolishing 
the slave trade, which had long been carried on at the 
port of Bristol. 

Battle Abbey was erected in commemoration of the 
conquest. The White Tower, or ''Keep," of the Tower 
of London, the beginning of this famous structure, 
was built in 1078. The castles of Winchester, Nor- 
wich and Hereford were erected. The })orts of Dover, 
Hastings and others were fortified, and the New 
Forest laid out as a hunting park. For this park 
many villages were destroyed and thousands of per- 
sons made homeless. The islands of Jersey, Alderney 
and Tarn, were added to England. The curfev*^ bell 
(from the French coin-re fcti, cover fire) was intro- 
duced into England at the beginning of this reign, 
and was rung nightly at eight o'clock, when all fires 
and lights were extinguished. Edgar Atheling, the 
grandson of Edward II., abrogated his title to the 
Saxon throne, Hereward, sometimes called Herewald 
le Wake, the last of the Saxon chieftains, so noted in 
the ballad literature of that period, long maintained a 
stubborn resistance to the claims of the conqueror, 
but was at last completely subdued by William (1071), 
and in the surrender of Ely died the last hopes of 
English freedom. The income of AVilliam was re- 
ported to be one thousand pounds daily, an enormous 
sum when gold was worth three, and silver ten times 
the present value, but his confiscations of the estates 
of insurgent subjects, of which he retained the chief 
share, made him very rich. 

The land grants to the Norman followers of Will- 



THE NORMAN CONQUEST. 35 

iam, and the creation of earldoms, or command of 
counties, for his favorites, was a marked feature of 
his reign. We note also the separation of the ecclesi- 
astical from the civil judicature, the founding of the 
Courts of Chancery and Exchequer, and the appoint- 
ment of Justices of the Peace. William successfully 
resisted the power of the Pope. He decreed three 
things: First, that neither the Pope, his representa- 
tives, nor letters from the Pope, should be received in 
England without his leave; second, that no meeting 
of Church authorities should be held without his 
direction; third, that no baron or servant of his should 
be expelled from the Church without his permission. 
In England alone, perhaps, of all the kingdoms of 
Europe, was this possible. 

Over the whole surface of the island the manors 
were burdened with their own customs, or special dues 
to the crown ; and to ascertain and record these the 
famous Domesday -book was prepared, setting forth 
the extent and nature of each estate, the names, num- 
ber and condition of its inhabitants, its value before 
and after the conquest, and the sums due from it to 
the crown. This celebrated book is written upon 
vellum, in two volumes, and is now preserved among 
the most precious archives of England. The next 
year after the completion of Domesday-book, which 
like the day of doom spared no one, William sum- 
moned all the nobles and chief landholders of the 
realm, with their vassals numbering about sixty thou- 
sand, to meet him at Salisbury plain, AViltshire. There 
he demanded the sworn allegiance of each of them. 



36 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

All took an oath to fight always and everywhere for 
the King, even against his own loril. 

With Harold II., resulting in the conquest of 
Enorland at the battle of Hastinofs, October 

Wars. '=' * ' 

14, lOGG. With his son Robert, Duke of 
Normandy, who rebelled against him, in 1077. With 
Philip I., of France, in 1087. The siege of the town 
of Mantes, lasting from July to September, when the 
accident occurred which resulted in William's death. 
With Scotland, 1068. 

Edgar Atheling {Edmund Ironsides) grandson of 
Noted Edmund II., Avho resigned his claim as the 

Persons. ^r^y^^w heir to the throne to William. Tavo 
Saxon Earls, Morea, or Morcar (created in 1065), 
and Edwin (created in 1070), 1005-1089. Ingul- 
phus. Abbot of Croyland, chronicler, 1080-1109. 
Aldred, Aired or Ealred, Bishop of Worcester, Arch- 
bishop of York, died 1069. Henry Halley, Norman 
lawyer, died 1088. Cospatric, Earl of Northumber- 
land, died 1067. Robert of Jamieges, Bishop of 
London, 1044, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1051, died 
1070. Odo, Bishop of Bayeux and Earl of Kent, 
died 1082. 

(2.3) WILLIAM II. 
1087 — 1100. 

William II., surnamed Ruber the Red (by some 
Birth and improperly termed Rupert or Rufus), was 
Parentage. ^^^^^^ j^^ Normandy in 1056, and was the 
third son of William the Conqueror and Queen 
Matilda. He was never married. 



THE NORMAN CONQUEST. 37 

By the will of AVilliam the Conqueror, Robert, bis 
Accession to eldest SOU, to wlioiu lie gave the Duchy of 
the Throne. ;Normandy, Avas set aside, and William, his 
third son, was named as his successor, and crowned 
at Westminster, London, September 20, 1087. 

His death occurred while hunting in the New 
Forest, Auo^ust 2, 1100, and was caused by 

Death. ' o ' ' J 

a '' quarrel," or cross-bow arrow, of a novel 

character, said to have been aimed at a stag, by his 
bowbearer, Sir Walter Tyrrel. AVh ether or not the 
result of accident, the arrow pierced the King's breast, 
and he died instantly. Tyrrel escaped by imme- 
diate flight; but so slight was the esteem in which 
the King was held, even by his own attendants, 
that it is said that his body was left where it fell 
uncared-for until the following day, when it was 
placed in the cart of a charcoal burner, and thus 
conveyed to W^inchester, where it was buried under 
the choir of the Cathedral, almost without cere- 
mony, and certainly unmourned. William I., made 
tyrannous game-laws, but he was indulgent in the en- 
forcement of them compared with AVilliam II. No 
man of Saxon descent dared to approach the royal 
preserves except at the peril of his life and danger of 
beinsT liunjr to the nearest tree, with his own bow- 
string. " Wood-keeper," and " Herdsman of the 
beasts," were the titles the peasants gave him. Their 
dislike for him was only 0(|ualed by their fear. 

In person AVilliam was much like his 

Personal Ap- i 

pearanceand father, exce[)t that liis hair was tinged with 

red, and liis conq)loxion muddy and became 

scarlet when angered; from which lu^ was called Ruber 



SS ENGLAND AND ITS KULERS. 

or Red. Like the Conqueror lie Avas remarkable for 
his strength. His character may be briefly summed 
up. He was cruel, selfish, ambitious; violent in tem- 
per and intemperate in his habits. His unscrupulous 
greed led him to retain in his own hands large sums 
from the revenues of the Church, which, Avith the 
money he plundered from his subjects, lie lavished 
upon such of his worthless favorites as especially 
pandered to his appetites. While the wise Bishop Lan- 
franc lived, his influence in some measure restrained 
the rapacity of the King, but after this prelate's death 
his extortions Avere terrible. For years he left many 
Bishoprics unfilled, among them the See of Canter- 
bury. At last, overtaken by a sudden illness, he seemed 
to realize the necessity of a primate, and selected 
Anselm, a learned, devout and meritorious man. While 
death was imminent the King was repentant, and 
desired pardon for his conduct, vowing solemnly that 
if he recovered he Avould lead an exemplary life. He 
ordered his prisoners to be set at liberty, his debtors 
forgiven, and many penalties remitted; but Avith re- 
stored health he quickly lapsed into his old habits, 
and his persecution of the good Archbishop at length 
compelled Anselm to seek safety by a residence at 
Rome, AAdiere he remained until after the monarch's 
death. 

The nobility o[)posed the accession of William, but 
Notable Averc bribed into acquiescence, Avitli the 

^^^"'^'- treasure left by the late King. The first 

crusade, or croisade (from the French word croix, a 
cross), was undertaken to rescue Palestine from the 



THE NORMAN CONQUEST. 39 

Saracens (followers of Mahomet), and Peter the Her- 
mit, in 1094, travelled through Europe, exhorting 
every prince to take up the cross. It was considered 
a religious duty to join the crusade ; and those who 
did so thought that if they died in the Holy Laud 
their eternal destinies were secure. 

Kobert, Duke of Normandy, mortgaged his duke- 
dom to AVilliam for ten thousand marks (18s. 4d. each), 
in order to join in the holy wars, with a suitable 
retinue. Edgar Atheling formed one of his train. 
The crusaders assembled on the plains of Asia, num- 
bered seven hundred thousand men, who were distin- 
guished by a large cross worn on their dress. Those 
of the English were white, the French red, the Flemish 
green, the Germans black and the Italians yelloAv. 

Magnus, King of Norway, effected a landing on 
the Isle of Anglesea, but was repulsed by the Earl of 
Shrewsbury (1097). This was the last attempt of the 
Northmen on England. William built a w^all around 
the Tower, and also erected Westminster Hall (270 
by 74 feet) for his dining room. It is thought to 
have been the largest room in Europe, and at that time 
was certainly one of the finest specimens of Gothic 
architecture extant. It was afterwards recon- 
structed, and became famous as the place where the 
trial of Charles I. took place. 

A very curious piece of needlework, called the 
Bayeux tapestry, said to have been the Avork of Queen 
Matilda, the mother of William II., is still in exist- 
ence at Caen, and contains portraits of the Conqueror 
and his family, as well as a series of pictures worked 



40 ENGLAND AND ITS RULEES. 

in worsted, representing the history of the conquest 
of England. It is supposed that her granddaughter, 
tlie Empress Maud, added to this interesting piece of 
tapestry. 

The sea overfioAved four thousand acres of land, 
eleven hundred of which formerly belonged to 
Godwin, or Goodwin, father of Harold II., and by 
him bequeathed to the monks of Canterbury. Tlie 
latter neglected to keep the wall in repair, so that 
the sea broke through and submerged the entire 
trfvt, wliich is situated opposite Deal, and is now 
called the Goodwin Sands. This place often proves 
fatal to mariners. 

During this reign the first London l)ridge was 
erected. It was a Avooden structure, having houses on 
either side of it. 

Fuller says in substance that the monks were 
William's only historians, and that it was the King's 
great misfortune that his eneniic^s slionld lawc diawn 
the only picture of him which has come to us. 

Odo, Bishop of Bayeux, uncle to the King, assisted 
by the nobles, revolted, but they were soon 

Wars. "^ ' ' ^ 

suppressed. 

William, in IDIK), attacked Normandy, which be- 
longed to his brother Bobert, but without success. 

Malcolm III., King of Scotland, invaded England. 
Having reduced the castle of Alnwick, the besieged 
were obliged to surrender, and oidy requested that 
the King would in person receive the keys of the 
gates. The keys wore brought on the top of a spear 
by Bobert de Mowbray, who, standing within the 



THE NORMAN CONQUEST. 41 

walls of the castle, thrust the lance through the King's 
eye as he started to take them (Nov. 13, 1093). For 
this exploit the governor received the name of Pierce- 
eye, now changed to Percy, which is still the family 
name of the Dukes of Northumberland. 

Peter [The Hermit), a French monk, who went to 
Noted the Crusades, died 1115. Godfey of Bou- 

Persons. logue, or Godefroid de Bouillon (Crusader), 
Duke of Lorraine, elected by the Crusaders King of 
Jerusalem. 1058-1100. AValter Tyrrel. 



(24) HENRY I. 
1100 1135. 

Henry I., surnamod Beauclerc, or the Scholar, was 
Birtii md born at Selby, in Yorkshire, in 1070, and 
rarentape. ^as the youngcst son of the Conqueror and 
Matilda, daughter of Baldwin V., Earl of Flanders. 

He usurped the throne made vacant by the death 
Accession to of liis brother William, and thereby a 
thoTiirone. gQ^Qi^j time Kobert was deprived of his 
hereditary rights. He was crowned at Westminster 
August 5, 1100, and reigned until 1135. 

He married Matilda, daughter of Malcolm III., 
and niece of Edo^ar Atheling, thus uniting 

Marriage. ^ . r -i 

the Saxon and Norman interests. Matilda 
(or Maud)* was crowned at Westminster November 11, 
1100. After her death Henry espoused Adelais of 
Brabant, daughter of Godfrey, Duke of Louvain, by 

♦The nanios Matilda aud Maud seem at this period to luivo been used 
interchangeably. 



42 ENGLAND AND ITS EULEES. 

whom lie had no issue. She was crowned Queen 
January 30, 1121,* at Westminster. 

William; and Matilda, who married, first, Henry V., 
Emperor of Germany, and afterwards 

Issue. J- . 

Geoifry, Earl of Anjou. 
His death occurred at St. Denis, in Normandy. 
His body was embalmed, brought to Enjj- 
land, and buried in Reading Abbey, Avhicli 
he liatl built. 

In personal appearance Henry was al)ove medium 
p stature, well proportioned and by historians 

po!ir;incoauci of his day Called handsome. He was a 

CJlitiriict'Gr* 

curious compound of character, Avhich has 
led to very diverse opinions regarding it. He was 
brave, accomplished and fond of literature, but avari- 
cious, cruel and violent. Strict in his ideas of equity, 
he did inucli towards the repression of ra|>ine and 
deeds of violence, so common at tliat j)eri()d in all 
parts of Europe. In his administration of justice, so 
highly beneficial to the country, he gained the title of 
the " Lion of Justice.'" He acquired the name of 
Beauclerc, or Scholar, from translating ^so[)'s fables 
for the first time into English. He was the first of 
the Norman Kings born and educated in England. 
For the period he had received more than an usual 
degree of education. 

Henry's first important act after assuming the 
Notable crowu Avas to issue a charter of liberties, 

Events. whereby he guaranteed: First, the rights of 

the Church; second, the rights of the nobles and land- 
holders to be free from extortion; third, the right of 

*Some authorities place this date January 29, 1129. 



THE NORMAN CONQUEST. 43 

all classes to be governed by the old English law, 
with William the Conqueror's amendments. A hun- 
dred copies were sent to the leading Abbots and 
Bishops for preservation in their monasteries and 
cathedrals. It was the first written guarantee of good 
government given by an English monarch to his 
subjects. His charter was not only a precedent for 
the great Charter, but was the first limitation im- 
posed on the despotism established by the conquest. 

He recalled Anselm, but had a fierce strugforle with 
him, against the power of the Pope, which was finally 
settled, Henry conceding to the papal authority the 
right of appointment of Bishops, but reserving the 
very important power of endoAving them, in return for 
which he was to receive their homage and oath of 
allegiance. In this way Henry retained his power 
over the Church. 

He also abolished the Curfew, and made many 
wholesome regulations. On returning from the cru- 
sades Kobert claimed the crown. The brothers, how- 
ever, at length agreed that Henry should retain the 
throne by paying an annual tribute of three thousand 
marks, but he shortly afterwards added Normandy to 
England, thus depriving Robert of his dukedom, as 
he had before wrongfully taken his kingdom. He is 
said to have died worth, according to the present value 
of money, three million pounds. 

In 1120, William, heir apparent, was shipwrecked 
off the coast of France, in a strait called the race of 
Alderney, when returning from Normandy, where he 
had been to receive the homage of the barons. More 



44 ENGLAND AND ITS IIULERS. 

than one hundred and fortj^ noblemen, and several 
ladies of rank, perished; a butcher of Kouen, named 
Bertold, alone escaped by clinging to a mast. On 
the news reaching England it was kept from the King 
for some days; when, however, he was told that the 
prince and all on board the ship had j^erished he 
fainted, and it was long before his extreme grief 
abated. Indeed, the loss of his son so affected Henry 
that he was never after seen to smile. He had now 
only one legitimate child left, his daughter Matilda, 
and his highest ambition was to make her his suc- 
cessor as Queen; but in this Avish he was violently 
opposed by many of the nobles. 

A revolt of the barons, who aimed to throw off the 
obligations of fealty and submission to the King, im- 
posed upon them by the Conqueror, assumed a threat- 
ening aspect under Eobert of Beleseme, who raised 
an army and invaded England in 1105. He was 
met by the King with sixty thousand footmen, who 
speedily and thoroughly crushed this rebellion. 

A religious order called "Knights Templars," or 
pious soldiers, was established iu 1118. The King's 
speech on opening Parliament dates its origin from 
this reign. Woodstock Park was laid out. The first 
stone arch bridge was erected over the Lea by Queen 
Matilda, and from its circular form called Bow Bridge. 
The payment of rents was changed from kind into 
money. A standard of weights and measures was 
fixed, and the yard measure adopted, which was fixed 
by the length of Henry's arm. 

The manufacture of woolen stuffs was introduced 



THE NORMAN CONQUEST. 45 

by a colony of Flemings, who settled at Worstead 
(near Norwich) ; hence the name of worsted 
stockings, etc. 

Surnames were first used in the reicrn of William 
the Conqueror, but their use was not common until 
this reign. Up to the time of the Normans people 
were generally called by one name, as Edwin, Harold, 
etc. People took their surnames from an event in their 
lives, or something remarkable in their dress, person, 
manners, etc. The possession of land furnished other 
names, as Preston, Ely, Grantham ; others were derived 
from trades and occupations, as Monk, Abbot, Mason, 
Glover and Carpenter; and others from employments 
now obsolete, as Falconer, Fletcher, Archer, etc. 

The power to bequeath property by will was con- 
firmed to English subjects in 1100. Kichard I. is 
credited in error with making the first will on record. 

Henry invaded Normandy, and defeated his brother 
at Tinchebray September 27, 110(3. He thus 
gained entire control of Normandy. Robert 
was taken prisoner, confined in Cardiff Castle, in 
Glamorganshire, and his eyes, it has been said, were 
cruelly put out. He remained in prison until his 
death, twenty-seven years later, and was buried at 
Gloucester. AVitli Louis VI., who restored to 
William, Robert's son, the Duchy of Normandy; — 
battle of Brenneville 11 L9. 

Anselm, or Anselmo, St., theologian, philosopher 
Noted and chronicler. Archbishop of Canterbury, 

Persons. 1033*-1109. Slmeou of Durham, a learned 
monk, mathematician and chronicler, 1001-1130.* 



46 ENGLAND AND ITS EULERS. 

Osburn, Bishop of Exeter, in 1072, died 1103. Sir 
Hugh de Pagano, founder of the order of Knights 
Templars, died 1118.* Thomas, Arcld^ishop of 
York, in 1070, died 1114. Matikla, wife of Henrj I., 
died 1118. 



(25) STEPHEN OF BLOIS. 
1135 — 1154. 

He was born at Blois, in 1105, and was grandson 
Birth and of the Couqueror, being second son of 
Parentage. Stephen, Earl of Blois, and Adela, daugh- 
ter of William I. 
Accession to He was crowncd at Westminster, Decem- 

the Throne. ^g^. 20^ 1135. 

He married Matilda, daughter of Eustace, Count 
of Boulogne. She was crowned Queen 

Marriage. " 

March 22, li;3t), at Westminster. 
Eustace, who died in his father's lifetime. William, 
Earl of Boulogne, and other children, none 

Issue. . 

succeeding to the throne. 
After a short illness Stephen died, at Dover, and 
was buried near his Avife in Feversham 

Death. 

Abbey, in Kent, which he had founded. 
He was tall, well made and muscular. His features 
_ , . were reijular, his hair dark auburn, sliofhtlv 

Personal Ap- o ' » ^ 

pearanceancl tinged witll red. 

Character. x i i i i • i 

in character iie Avas active and ener- 
getic, possesed of great courage and fortitude. 
During his Avhole reign, although engaged in scenes 
of great tumult and trial, not an act of willful oppres- 



THE NORMAN CONQUEST. 47 

slon is recorded against him. As a King liis faults 
seem to have arisen from troubles in which he Avas 
involved by the acts of Matilda, the daughter of 
Henry I., and her adherents, among whom Eobert, 
Duke of Gloucester, her half-brother, was the most 
prominent. 

Stephen, on his accession, granted many privileges 
Notable to his subjects, permitting the barons to 
Events. fortify their castles, and to hunt in their 

own forests. 

In 113G, the City of London, from Aldersgate to 
St. Paul's, was destroyed by fire, and at the same 
time London Bridge was burned; this structure, as 
well as most of the houses, at that time being built 
of timber. Stephen was the first monarch to make 
the Tower a royal residence, after which it was fre- 
quently used as such until the time of James II. 

On February 2, 1140, Matilda, with her half-brother 
the Duke of Gloucester, landed in England, and de- 
feated Stephen at Lincoln, where he was captured and 
subsequently confined in Bristol Cattle. Matilda was 
crowned, with some pomp and ceremony, at Winches- 
ter, in 1141, but her conduct displeasing the nation, 
she was compelled to flee into Normandy, and Ste- 
phen regained the throne. 

Henry, Duke of Normandy, the son of Matilda, 
came to England in 1151 to claim his hereditary 
rights, and was supported in his demands by the 
barons. At a conference held at Wallingford, in 
Berkshire, a compromise was effected, by the terms 
of which Stephen was alloAved to retain the crown in 



48 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

peace for life, and Henry to succeed to the tlirone, 
leaving Boulogne and his patrimonial estate to Ste- 
phen's son William. 

Sugar was first introduced during this reign. 

The barbarous custom of confiscating vessels 
wrecked on British shores, which had long existed, 
still continued, but a law was passed in the suc- 
ceeding reign, providing that if man or animal were 
found alive in the vessel it and its cargo should be 
restored to the owners. 

The useless practice of performing the coronation 
ceremony three times annually was discontinued after 
this reign. 

During this period England was a continued scene 
„, of bloodshed and horror. The barons and 

Wars. 

clergy rebelled, partly through loyalty to 
Matilda, but more from a spirit of independence. 
David I., King of Scotland, invaded the Northern 
counties in support of his niece Matilda, but Avas de- 
feated at North Allerton, in Yorkshire, Auofust 22 
1138. This engagement is sometimes called the 
Battle of the Standard, from the fact that the English 
brought into the field a large cross bearing the em- 
blems of different saints. Hume says: "the conse- 
crated banners of St. Cuthbert of Durham, St. Peter 
of York, St. John of Beverley, and St. "Wilfred of 
Ripon, were erected by the English on a wagon, 
and carried along with the army as a military 
ensign." 

Battle of Lincoln, with Matilda and her adherents, 
February 2, 1140. 



THE NORMAN CONQUEST. 49 

Geoffrey of Monmouth, historian, 1100*-1154. 
Noted Henry of Huntington, chronicler, died 1168. 

Persons. Robert, Duke of Gloucester, natural son of 
Henry I., died 1146. William of Malmesbury, his- 
torian and chronicler, 1095*-1143.* 



HISTORICAL MEMORANDA CONNECTED WITH THE 
NORMAN LINE. 

The Normans, in many things, presented a 
marked contrast to the Saxons and the Danes, and were 
vastly superior in politeness, in taste and in refinement. 
Intoxication was almost unknown to them, while the 
Saxons were noted for their voracity and intemper- 
ance. The Normans were the courteous, polished gen- 
tlemen of the continent: brave, warlike, and skilled in 
all that makes good soldiers. 

Their subjugation of England Avas complete. But 
their rulers were still Frenchmen, and held Britain 
subordinate in their affections to their own country. 
Most of them had been born in France, and had spent 
the greater part of their lives there, and the high 
offices in their gift were almost invariably filled by 
Frenchmen. They were mighty warriors, and every 
conquest made by them on the continent only served 
to estrange them the more from their British subjects. 
The Anglo-Saxons were deemed an inferior race, and 
their degraded condition was enhanced by the cruelty 
with which they were treated by their Norman rulers. 

The spirit of chivalry which was displayed in this 
age, showing itself in tournaments between armed 



50 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

knights, iiuder the auspices of royalty; the reward of 
success being some ornament bestowed by a fair lady, 
promoted courtesy and gentle manners, somewhat 
alleviating the harsh features of the feudal system, 
and tending to the elevation of women. 

Agriculture during the Norman dynasty was greatly 
advanced, husbandmen from France and Flanders in- 
troducing their own improved methods of cultivating 
the soil. The clergy also gave an impetus to art, in 
religious painting and sculpture, Avhile the illuminated 
missals and manuscripts, which have come down to us 
from that time, produced by the monks, are still sources 
of admiration and wonder. The simple habits of the 
Normans allowed them but two meals a day. The 
customary hour for dinner was nine in the forenoon, 
while supper was had at five P. M. It may be deemed 
one secret of their predominance over the Saxons that 
they were so temperate both in meat and drink. Eng- 
land began to be at this period a commercial nation, 
and the traders of London, as well as those of York, 
Bristol and other toAvns, grew rich by trade and ship- 
ping. 

The prevailing language was French, and the public 
records and edicts were in that tongue. Even William 
the Conqueror, never mastered the language of his 
subjects so as to speak it intelligibly. 

The Norman army included cavalry as well as foot- 
soldiers. The cavalry were known as Knights, who 
wore armor and a helmet, and carried a shield. The 
knight was thoroughly trained for his vocation, first 
following his master as a page and then as a squire. 



THE NORMAN CONQUEST. 51 

After seven years in this service lie spent several days 
in church, engaged in religious rites, fasting and 
prayer. Then he took an oath to be loyal to the King, 
to defend religion, and to rescue every lady in danger 
or distress. Then, having had a sword blessed by 
the priest girded to his side, he knelt to the prince or 
noble Avho was to perform the final ceremony, who 
struck him lightly on the shoulder, saying: "In the 
name of God, St. Michael, and St. George, I dub thee 
knight. Be brave, hardy and loyal." In case a knight 
was untrue to his oath he was publicly degraded. 
Knighthood was necessarily confined to the aristocracy, 
as only the wealthy class could afford the price of 
horse and armor. 

During the Norman period many monasteries were 
built. William established ecclesiastical courts em- 
powered to try all clerical offenders. All priests had 
a right to be tried in this court, and as the punish- 
ments inflicted were merely nominal, many, in fact 
nearly all, thus escaped the punishment due to tlunr 
offences. 

The arts of painting, sculpture and poetry, which 
had been cultivated to some extent by the priests, did 
not flourish under the Norman dynasty; but archi- 
tecture advanced greatly, and many specimens, like 
the cathedral of Peterborough, still command the 
admiration of mankind. 



1154 — 1399. 
THE ANGEVINS OR PLANTAGENETS. 

(2G) HENRY II. 
1154 — 1189. 

Henry II., first of the line of Plantagenets, was 
Birth and bom at Mans, in Normandy, 1133. He was 
Parentage. ^|^g g^^^ q£ Geoffrey of Anjou, tiie Hand- 
some, and Matilda, daughter of King Henry I. Geof- 
frey had acquired the name of Plantagenet from his 
custom of Avearing in his helmet, plante-genet, or the 
golden-blossomed broom-plant. From his father 
came the title of Anafevin. 

Henry II., ascended the throne, and was crowned 
Accession to at Westminster December 19, 1154. Sub- 
the Throne, gequeutly the ceremony was repeated at the 
cathedrals of Lincoln and Worcester. 
„ . He married Eleanor, daufjhter of Will- 

Alarriage. _ ^ 

iam, Duke of Aquitaine, in 1152. 
Sons, Henry; William, who died in infancy; Ptich- 
ard; Geoffrey and John. Henry died from 

Issue. '' -' 

a fever, at Martel in 1183; Geoffrey was 
killed at a tournament at Paris, in 1185. King Henry 
also left three legitimate daughters: Maud, born in 
115G, married Henry, Duke of Saxony; Eleanor, 
born in 11G2, married Alphonso, King of Castile; 
Joan, born in 11G5, married William, King of Sicily. 

52 



THE ANGEVINS OR PLANTAGENETS. 53 

He died at the castle of Cliinon, near Saumer, 
ill Normandv, July 6, 1189. 

Death. . - ' "^ . 

His compact, vigorous frame was 
adapted to one who proved himself the hardest 
„ , . worker of his time. His square, stout 

Personal Ap- i ' 

pearance and figure, fiery face, close cropped hair, prom- 
inent eyes, bull neck, and coarse, strong 
hands, indicated his stalwart, sturdy character. 
It was said of him: "He never sits down. 
He is always on his legs from morning to night." 
It was emphatically true of him, that " uneasy 
lies the head that wears a crown." His life was 
a continued struggle ; first, with the clergy ; then, 
with France and Scotland, and, finally, with his own 
sons, whose ingratitude at last " quite vanquished 
him." He seems to have been a born ruler. He was 
a rough man, of strong passions, obstinate in love or 
hatred, fond of his children, yet for long years har- 
assed by the unjust wars they waged against him. 
Often called on to arbitrate between the rulers of 
neighboring states, his keen sense of justice Avas re- 
spected by all. He did much to advance the interest 
of England by his reformation of the abuses of the 
Clnirch, as shown in the Constitutions of Clarendon, 
whereby the Clergy were shorn of their unjust powers, 
and made subject to the common law of the realm. He 
also initiated the rule of law, as distinct from that of 
despotism, and the commutation " of the right of the 
personal service " of his subjects for a limited time to 
a payment in money. 

First and foremost among the stirring events of 



54 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

his reigu was the contest with Thomas Becket, 
Notable commoiily called Thomas d Becket, lastiii*^, 

Events. from 11G2, for more than eight years. Becket 

was a Londoner, born of humble parents, but, like 
King Henry himself, of marked capacity, courage 
and industry. Sent by Archbishop Theobald to Italy, 
he studied law at Bologna. On his return he was 
made Archdeacon of Canterbury, AVhen Henry be- 
came King a warm friendship sprang up between them. 
Henry first made him chancellor, and entrusted him 
with the education of the heir to the throne, and when 
the See of Canterbury became vacant by the death of 
Theobald, made him Archbishop. From that time the 
devouring although unselfish ambition of Becket knew 
no object except the aggrandizement of the Church, 
until Henry began to fear that the crown Avas in danger 
of becoming subordinate to the mitre. Henry, too, 
was determined that the clergy should be amenable 
to the common law, and subject to the same punish- 
ment as laymen. Becket bitterly resisted this. From 
that time forth the contest raged fiercely, until at 
length the King summoned him to a])pear before a 
council at Northampton. Becket then fled to France, 
not only to save himself from the enmity of the King, 
but in the hope of being able to induce Louis IL and 
the Pope to espouse his cause. But the sympathy of 
the people Avith Becket was so strong, and the power of 
the Church so great, that the King deemed it expedi- 
ent to avoid a contest wliicli would be attended with so 
mucli loss of life and waste of treasure. He therefore 
went to France, and personally urged Becket to return. 



THE ANGEVINS OR PLANTAGENETS. 00 

The latter finally yielded, and the difficulty seemed com- 
promised ; but it was in fact only a hollow truce. The 
Church and Henry could not both rule England. The 
Archbishop of York, and the Bishops of London and 
Salisbury, had recently officiated at the coronation of 
Prince Henry at Westminster. The selection by the 
King of these dignitaries to perform so high an office, 
which by right belonged to Becket, had given him 
mortal offence, and therefore as soon as he reached 
England he excommunicated them. Henry was then 
at the castle of Bur, near Bayeux, and when he heard 
of this act of Becket his rage knew no boiinds, and in 
his anger he exclaimed, "Will none of the cowards 
who eat my bread rid me of that turbulent priest?" 
This hasty expression was misconstrued by Reginald 
Fitzurse, Hugh de Morville, Richard de Breton, and 
William de Tracy, courtiers in attendance, into an 
authority to kill the prelate, and soon after Becket 
returned to England they carried out their purpose, 
brutally murdering him December 29, 1170, in St. 
Benedict's Church, Canterbury. The Pope proclaimed 
Becket a saint. The cathedral, so long his care, was 
hung in mourning. Thousands of pilgrims came to 
his shrine from all parts of Christendom, creeping to 
it on their knees to gain his intercession. In its great 
charity, history absolves Henry from intentional guilt 
in Becket's murder, and the Pope, after many mis- 
givings, was also at length convinced. The monarch 
hastened his return to England; did penance at Can- 
terbury, remaining there a day and a night, submitting 
to be scourged by the monks after having walked 



5() ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

three miles bare-footed to the tomb of Becket, before 
the pardon and absolution of the Pope was given 
him. 

The Kiug, having associated Prince Henr}^ with 
himself in the regal power (doubtless, to emphasize 
the act), did him homage by waiting upon him at table. 

The remainder of the King's life Avas embittered, 
and his death hastened, by the enmity of his only re- 
maining sons, Richard and John, Avho, with the aid of 
Louis of France, waged war against him. His devo- 
tion to his sons had been rewarded by tlie hatred and 
ingratitude of each of them, and this tlirew him into a 
lingering fever, of wliich he expired in the fifty- 
eighth year of his life, and the thirty-fifth of his 
reign. 

In 1173 the Queen Avas imprisoned for causing the 
death of Rosamond Clifford, a favorite of the King's. 
AVoodstock is celebrated as being the place Avhere 
" the fair Rosamond " Avas so carefully concealed by 
Henry. 

The reconstruction of London Bridge, tlien first 
built of stone, Avas begun in this reign, and tl>e course 
of the Thames Avas turned aside for that pur[)ose, by 
cutting a canal from Rotherhithe to Battersea. In 117G 
England Avas divided into six circuits for the adminis- 
tration of justice, and three judges Avere appointed to 
each. Charters were also granted to numerous toAvns. 
Glass AvindoAvs Avere first used in private houses in 
1180. The Temple, in London, Avas built l)y the 
Knights Templars. Abbeys and Priories, for the edu- 
cation of youth, for the accommodation of travellers, 



THE ANGEVINS OR PLANTAGENETS. 57 

and the relief of the indigent, were very numerous at 
this period. 

Henry issued a new coinage of standard weight 
and purity. He drove beyond the seas the foreign 
mercenaries who had been harbored in England during 
the reign of Stephen. He seized the royal castles 
which had been usurped, and demolished those which 
had been reared for systematic plunder. 

To Henry belongs the honor of founding the sys- 
tem of trial by jury, afterwards perfected and fully 
established in England, and subsequently adopted by 
the whole civilized world. A grand jury of sixteen 
was chosen in every district to report to the judges, 
the criminals residing in them, who afterwards had a 
right to be tried by a petit jury. At first this jury 
was composed of persons supposed to be cognizant of 
the facts, but afterwards their duty was confined to 
hearing witnesses, who were summoned, and gave on 
oath their testimony. 

In 1172 Henry completetl the conquest of Ireland, 
annexed it to the English crown, and gov- 

Wsrs 

erned it by a Viceroy. He also gained 
ascendency over the AVelsh. 

His sons, supported by the kings of France, re- 
peatedly rebelled. William I., surnamed the Lion, of 
Scotland, invaded Northumberland with eighty thou- 
sand men, but was taken prisoner at Alnwick, by 
Glanville, September 28, 1174, and compelled to sub- 
mit to very humiliating conditions. This was the first 
ascendency over Scotland, Avhich now became subject 
to the English King, as lord paramount. 



58 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Matilda, daughter of Henry I., wife of Henry V., 
Noted Emperor of Germany, 1102-1165. Thomas 

Persons. ^ Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1119- 
1170. Eanulph de Granville, statesman, crusader 
and judge, died 1100. William, Earl of Pembroke 
[Stronghoiv) , Marshal of England, Seneschal of Ulster 
and Governor of Ireland, died 1191. Adrian IV. 
{Nicholas Brcukspcar), Pope (1154), 1092-1159, the 
only Englishman who has ever held the pontificate. 



(27) RICHARD I., 

SURNAMED CCEUR DK LION. 
1189 — 1199. 

Richard, born at Oxford (1157), was the eldest 
Birth and Surviving son of Henry II. and Eleanor of 

Parentage. Aquitaine. 

Accession to He was crownctl at AVestminster Sep- 

the Throne, tember 3, 1189, and reigned until 1199. 
He was married on May 12, 1191, at Cyprus, to 
Berengaria, dauf^hter of Sanchez, King of 

Marriage. fc> ' o ^ ' & 

Navarre, and had no issue. 
When besieging the Castle of Chaluz, near Li- 
^ , moges, in Erance, he Avas wounded in the 

Death. ^ ' ' 

shoulder by an arrow from the bow of 
Bertrand De Jourdain, and eleven days afterwards 
died, August 0, 1199. He desired his bowels to 
be buried at Chaluz, among the rebellious Poictevins; 
his heart at Rouen, in recognition of the loyalty of the 
citizens; and his body at the feet of his father atFond- 
Evrard, to express his sorrow for his unfilial conduct. 



THE ANGEVINS OR PLANTAGENETS. 59 

Kichard, in person, was manly, engaging, tall; 
, . with broad shoulders, and hair of a bright 

Personal Ap- '-' 

pearanceand aubum, with Sparkling blue eyes. 

A tinge of romance must forever hang 
around the reign of this monarch, whose life was made 
up of a series of adventures in knight-errantry. They 
were but the natural outcome of a character composed 
of such antipodal qualities, at once so grand and 
groveling, so noble and mean; while the story of his 
life makes the lines of Dr. Johnson on Charles XII., 
of Sweden, peculiarly applicable to him, for: 

"His fate was destined to a foreign strand, 
A petty fortress and a dubious hand; — 
He left a name at which the world grew pale, 
To point a moral and adorn a tale." 

The graphic picture of this character by Mr. Tur- 
ner, in his History of England, is not overdrawn: 
" Haughty, irascible and vindictive, a towering and 
barbaric grandeur, verging at times into barbarian 
cruelty, distinguished his actions. Valiant beyond the 
measure of human daring, unparalleled in his feats of 
prowess; inferior to no man in hardihood, strength 
and agility; stern and inflexible in his temper; rapa- 
cious and selfish, yet frequently liberal to profusion; 
gorgeous to ostentation; often gay, familiar, satirical 
and jocular; unshaken by adversity; resolute to obsti- 
nacy, furious in warfare, fond of battle and always 
irresistibly victorious; his life seems rather the fiction 
of a poet's imagination than the sober portrait of 
authentic history. The surname he gained of Coeur 
de Lion was peculiarly fitting. But underlying all 



60 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

these traits may often be seen tlie softening influence 
of liis love of literature, especially Provencal poetry." 
Yet witlial, truth compels the record that his reign 
added nothing to the civilization or pros})erity of the 
kingdom. 

The horrible story of the massacre of the Jcavs at 
Notable Ricliard's coronation is too shocking and 

Events. ^^^ ^^^y^ known to need repetition in de- 

tail here. The Jews in great numbers had especial 
reasons for being anxious to express their loyalty, and 
prepared Avith rich presents, which they knew would 
be acceptal)le to their sovereign, were endeavoring to 
approach him while the state dinner was in progress. 
A scuffle with some of the attendants ensued, which at 
once became an ungovernable riot. The Jews resisted 
this ill-treatment, which so inflamed the passions of 
the mob that nothing could restrain their violence, 
and it quickly extended, not only to the city, but 
throughout the country. Thousands of defenceless 
Israelites were ruthlessly massacred and plundered of 
their goods, and it was in vain that the soldiers tried 
to restrain the infuriated English mob until their 
ferocity and greed had been satiated. The King em- 
poAvered Glanville, the Justiciary, to inquire into this 
fearful disaster, but as it Avas found that too many 
of the more prominent citizens Avere involved, it Avas 
deemed Avise to drop the prosecution, and very fcAv 
suffered the punishment due to their great crime. 

Richard, having sold the vassalage of Scotland and 
extorted large sums from his subjects, engaged in the 
crusades, and joined Philip of France on the plains of 



THE ANGEVINS OK PLANTAGENETS. Gl 

Vizelay (1190). Ou his voyage to Palestine he took 
Isaac, King of Cyprus, a prisoner, and loaded him 
with silver chains (1191j. 

r^King Philip withdi-e\v his troops from Palestine, 
leavino- Kichard alone to encounter the Saracens, but 
disorders arising in England, he started for home, and 
learning that plans had been made for his capture, 
rashly resolved to pass through Germany in the dis- 
guise of a pilgrim. He was, however, shipwrecked at 
Aquileia, north of the Gulf of Venice, and being there 
recognized by the Duke of Austria, with whom he had 
quarreled in Palestine, was delivered into the hands 
of his enemy, Henry VI., Emperor of Germany. 

The fate of the King was long a matter of doubt, 
so closely Avas the secret of his place of confinement 
concealed. Its discovery, however, was, like so many 
events in Kichard's life, somewhat romantic. A French 
minstrel named Blondel, who had long been his serv- 
ant and friend, after weary wanderings through Pales- 
tine and Germany, in search of his royal master, one 
day seated himself l)eneatli the grated windows of a 
castle in lower Austria, and began to sing one of those 
ballads of Provence, which in the old days he had 
taught the King. He had just finished the first stanza 
when, to his surprise and delight, the refrain was 
caught up by a voice which he at once recognized as 
tiiat of Pilchard. After being a captive for fifteen 
months, he was ransomed for a sum of money, Avliich 
was raised by a general tax, according to the present 
value equal to two hundred and fifty thousand pounds, 
and returned to England, arriving there March 13, 



02 ENGLAND AND ITS IIULERS. 

1194. "The devil is loose, take care of yourself," 
wrote Philip to John, wheu he heard of the King's 
release. 

During his absence the Bishops of Durham and 
Ely had charge of the kingdom, but his brother John 
endeavored to gain the throne. Richard, on his re- 
turn, forgave him, oljserving, "I pardon him, and I 
hope I shall as easily forget his injuries as he will my 
pardon." 

In the battle of Gisors, 1108, Richard gave his 
army as a paroh; of the day, " Dieu et mon droit" 
(God and my right). Such signal success attended 
him in the contest that he made the watclnvord the 
motto of the royal arms, which they have since borne. 

During the crusade crests were introduced. Rich- 
ard adopted as his emblem three lions passant, which 
still mark the shields of England, and were later em- 
bodied in the coat of arms of the royal family. Only 
four months of the reign of tJiis King were passed in 
England, and in his absence the disorders of the 
country were so great as to baffle description in our 
short record of the time. No man's life or property 
were secure, and the country was infested by bands of 
robbers. 

AVith Saladin, Sultan of Egypt, battle of xVcre, 
July 12, 1191: of Ascalon. September 7, 

Wars. ./ ' 1 

1191. Joppa, Cfcsura and other cities 
were subdued in 1192, when a truce was agreed 
upon, for three years, three months, three weeks and 
three days, a number supposed then to possess some 
magic virtues. With his vassal Vidomar, Lord of 



THE ANGEVINS OK PLANTAGENETS. 03 

Limoges; siege of Clialnz, au obscure castle in the 
province of Limousin, April 6, 1199. 

Saladin I. (Salali-Ed-Deen), Sultan of Egyj)t and 
Noted Syria, 1137-1102 or 3. Leopold (le Beau), 

Persons. ^|Jgj ]^q(j(. Bcrtrand de Jourdain. William 
Fitz Osbert {Long heard), executed for sedition. 
Michael Belet, judge, died 1189. Benoit, biographer 
and chancellor to Richard I., died 1200. Geoffrey 
Hose, judge in 1179, died 1199. Hugh de Morenic, 
judge in 1184, died 1190. Randolph Blundevil, Earl 
of Chester, judge, in 11*13. 



(28) JOHN, 

SURNAMED RANSTERRE, OR LACKLAND. 
1199 — 121G. 

Born at Oxford December 24, 1100. He was the 
Birth and SOU of Henry II. by Eleanor, daughter of 
Parentage. ^ViHiam, Duke of Aquitain. 
Accession to He was crowucd at AVestminster May 27, 

the Throne. -| -j q() 

He was married three times. His last consort was 

Isabella, daughter of Aymer Tailleffer, Count 

of Angouleme, by whom only he had issue. 

Isabella was crowned at Westminster October 5, 1200. 

Henry; Jane, married to Alexander II., King of 
Scotland; Eleancu-, married to Simon de 
Montfort; Isabella; and Richard, elected 
Kinof of the Romans. 

Death. 

The fatigue of a tiresome march across 
the waste of Lincolnshire, during which, by the 



64 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

rising of the tide, lie lost liis hao^ijaiTfe and reoralia, 
as well as the records of the kingdom, threw him into 
a fever, of which he died at Newark castle, in Notting- 
hamshire. His heart was deposited in a golden urn 
at Fort Edward, and his body buried at Worcester 
October 19, 1216. 

He was tall and corpulent, of great physical 
, . streuijth, with a countenance proud, fierce 

Personal Ap- & ' i ' 

pearancoand and repellent. It was a proverb of the time, 
"Foul as it is, hell itself is defiled bj^ the 
fouler presence of John." His insolence, selfishness, 
unbridled lust, cruelty and tyranny, joined to craven 
superstition and the most cynical indifference to honor 
or truth, made him feared and abhorred of all men. 
His profound ability, his inborn genius for war, and 
the rapidity and breadth of his political combinations, 
alone enabled him to maintain his position. The 
enemy of God and man, his reign was a perpetual war- 
fare against all that is lovely and of good report, a 
constant struggle against English freedom. 

London Bridge was completed, and the Cinque 
Ports endowed with additional ] privileges. A standing 
army for the first time was equipped. 

The annual election of a Lord Mayor and two 
Sheriffs of London dates from this reign. 

Chimneys in houses were first used, in 1200, but 
until the year 1300 only one, built in the center of 
each house, was provided. 

The Jews were held in great detestation, but had 
accumulated great Avealth in spite of unjust extortions 
and cruelties. 



THE ANGEVINS OR PLANTAGENETS. 65 

John is said to have murdered, in the castle of 
Notable Eouen (1202), his nephew Arthur, who was 

Events. YieiY to the crown, and the only son of 

John's elder brother Geoffrey. He also imprisoned 
Arthur's sister Eleanor, called " the damsel of Brit- 
tany," in Bristol castle, Avliere she died in 1241. 

John's reign was chiefly occupied with three hardly 
fought contests, all of which resulted disastrously to 
him, but well for his realm. 

Piiilip of France accused John of the murder of 
Arthur, and commanded him, as Duke of Normandy 
(and hence under the feudal law his dependent), to 
present himself at Paris for trial. John failing to 
appear before the court, he was adjudged a traitor, 
and all his lands on the continent were declared for- 
feit. He finally made an effort to regain these posses- 
sions, but was thoroughly defeated. Philip seized 
Normandy, and deprived John of all his possessions 
north of the river Loire. 

A more humiliating defeat was that which resulted 
from his contest Avith Pope Innocent III., who had 
commanded the monks of Canterbury to choose Stephen 
Langton Archbishop, in place of a person nominated 
by the King. John forbade Langton to enter his 
kingdom. The Pope at once placed his realm imder 
interdict, and ordered all religious exercises suspended. 
The churches were draped in black and closed, no 
bells were rung, and for two years no sacraments were 
administered. The Pope then, by bull, excommuni- 
cated the King, but he avenged himself by ill-treating 
the priests, many of whom fled the laud. The Pope 



00 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

then proceeded to extremities, deposed John, and di- 
rected Philip to seize the English crown. Then John, 
realizing his weakness and nnpopularity, already hav- 
ing alienated almost the entire nation, made haste to 
throw himself at the feet of the Pope's legate, and 
concede all that was asked. He healed the rupture by 
consenting that Lano^ton should assume the office of 
Archbishop, and by promising to Rome an annual 
tribute equal to about sixty-four thousand dollars in 
modern currency. Upon these most ignoble terms he 
was allowed to retain his crown. The terms of the 
remarkable covenant then made cannot be omitted. 
Tlic^ Avere as follows: 

'^'' I Jolni, by the grace of God. King of England, 
and Lord of Ireland, in order to expiate my sins, from 
my own free will and the advice of my barons, give to 
the Church of Rome, to Pope Innocent and his suc- 
cessors, the kingdom of England and all other prerog- 
atives of my crown. I will hereafter hold them as 
the Pope's vassal. I will be faithful to God, to the 
Church of Rome, to the Pope, my master, and to his 
successors legitimately elected. I promise to pay him 
a tribute of one thousand marks; to-Avit, seven hun- 
dred for the kingdom of England, and three hundred 
for the kingdom of Ireland." 

The third and most momentous contest was with 
the barons. He had exhausted their patience by 
wrongfully absorbing the revenues of the Cliurch, 
by unlawful extortions, and by gross attacks upon 
the lives, liberties and property of his subjects. 
Supported b}^ Langton, by the Church, and indeed by 



THE ANGEVINS OR PLANTAGENETS. 67 

the entire nation, the barons determined to seek re- 
dress. Tlieir first meeting was held at St. Albans, in 
the summer of 1213. It consisted of delegates from 
all parts of the kingdom, convened to consider what 
demand should be made of the King. The work of 
framing an expression of their demands was left to a 
committee supposed to be headed by the Archbishop. 
In the autumn of 1214 they met again at St. Edmunds- 
bury, and each at the high altar took a solemn oath to 
oblige John to concede the charter then adopted or to 
join in war against him. 

At Easter, 1215, the same barons, with two thou- 
sand armed knights, waited on the King, and presented 
to him the charter. He at first refused a direct answer, 
but the power of public sentiment was too great, and 
lie dared not resist it. He finally asked them to name 
the day and place for the ratification of the instrument. 
" Let the day be the fifteenth of June, and the place 
Runnymede," was the answer. "In the meadow called 
Runnymede, between Windsor and Staines, on the 
fifteenth of June, in the seventeenth year of our 
reign," so it reads, was signed and sealed Magna 
Carta, or the Great Charter. It contained sixty-three 
articles, tlwce of which have formed the foundation of 
all subsequent legislation, the corner stones of English 
freedom. The first provided that no freeman should 
be imprisoned except by lawful judgment of his peers 
or the law of the land; the second, that justice should 
neither be sold, denied or delayed; and the third, that 
all dues from the people to the King, unless otherwise 
distinctly specified, should be imposed only with the 



68 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

consent of the Groat Council. " So highly was this 
Charter esteemed," says a late liistorian, " that it was 
confirmed no less than thirty-seven times." When 
Charles II. entered London he was asked again to 
ratify it; and all free peoples have incorporated its 
main provisions in their constitutions. 

The rest of John's reign was spent in efforts to 
overthrow the Charter, until death put an end to his 
perfidy. An old chronicle says of him: "He was a 
knight without truth, a king without justice, a Chris- 
tian without faith." 

AVith Philip II., of France, and with the barons 
who invited Louis, Philip's eldest son, to 

Wars. ' ^ .' 

come to England and offered to crown him. 
Arthur, Duke of Brittany, nephew of King John, 
Noted 1187^1202. Pantulph, judge in 1189, died 

Persons. ^^^^^^^^ 3^9 13. Hubert Fitzwalter, Bishop of 
Sarum in 1189, Archbishop of Canterbury in 1193, 
died 1205. Robert Fitzwalter, a general of the barons' 
army. John de Courcy, Earl of Ulster, a warrior, 
Governor of Ireland in 1185, famous for his strength 
and prowess. To him John granted the privilege, for 
himself and his descendants, of wearing their hats in 
the royal presence. Died 1199 or 1205. Stephen 
Langton, Statesman 1151-1228. Archbishop of 
Canterbury in 1207. He divided the Bible into chap- 
ters and verses. Gervais of Tilberry, historian and 
latin poet, 1133-1218. 



THE ANGEVINS OR PLANTAGENETS. 69 



(29) HENRY III., 

SURNAMED WINCHESTER. 

1216 — 1272. 

He was born at Winchester October 1, 1207, and 
Birth and was the eldest son of John, but being a 
Parentage, minor at the time of his accession to the 
throne, the Earl of Pembroke was made Protector. 

Henry was first crowned at Gloucester October 28, 
Accession to 1216, and a second time at Westminster 
the Throne, j^jj^^. -^r^ ;i^221. Hubert de Burgh succeeded 
the Earl of Pembroke in the guardianship of the 
young King, who attained his majority in 1227. 

He was married January l-l, 1236, at Canterbury, 
to Eleanor, daughter of Eaymond, Earl of 

Marriage. i f\ l 

Provence. She was crowned (^ueen at 
Westminster January 20, 1236. 

Edward; Edmund, Earl of Lancaster; Margaret, 

married to Alexander III., of Scotland; and 

other children who died young. 

Overcome with the infirmities of age, he died 

November 16, 1272, at St. Edmundsbury, 

Death. . . ... 

and was buried m Westminster Al)l)ey. 
He was of about medium stature, compact and mus- 
cular. His countenance had a peculiar cast, 

Personal Ap- 
pearance and owing to the fact that he had a drooping 

eyelid. Ho was weak, vacillating, and too 

easily influenced by the ambitious men of his court. 

He committed no great crimes, but was insincere, 

unwise and cowardly. Profuse and fickle, impulsive, 

unbridled in temper, his delight was in lavish and 



70 ENGLAND AND ITS KULERS. 

extravagant display, and his one idea of government 
was a dream of arbitrary power. 

In 1225 Magna Carta Avas confirmed. In 1254, 
Notable fit tlie instance of the Pope, Henry accepted 

Events. ^j^^ crown of Sicily for his son Edmund, but 

the ])urden of raising the requisite money to carry out 
tlie project widened the breach between the King and 
the people, and he was compelled to abandon the plan. 
The disagreements, however, were not settled. In 1258 
the famous " mad parliament " was summoned at 
Oxford, to devise a plan for the reformation of the 
government. Twenty-four barons were selected, and 
conducted affairs for some years, until they quar- 
reled among themselves. 

In 12()2 the King made a fruitless attempt to 
escape from the power of the barons. Finally, the 
troubles were by agreement arbitrated upon by Louis 
IX., but the barons refused to submit, and in 1264, 
the King and his brother being taken prisoners, the 
administration fell into the hands of the Earls of 
Leicester and Gloucester, and the Bishop of Chichester. 

In 1270 Prince Edward, the King's eldest son, 
joined the crusade of St. Louis, and was highly distin- 
guished for his bravery. In 1220 Thomas d Becket's 
bones were enshrined in gold and jewels at Canterbury, 
and pilgrims from all parts flocked thither to worship 
and to offer |)rayers and gifts, a custom which contin- 
ued until 1531), in the reign of Henry YIIL, Avhen the 
shrine was pillaged and the martyr's bones were burned. 

This reign witnessed many improvements in domes- 
tic life; coal was discovered at Newcastle in 1233, 



THE ANGEVINS OR TLANTAGENETS. 71 

and during this reign was substituted for wood, and a 
license was granted to the people of Newcastle to 
mine it. This is the first mention we have of this 
useful mineral. Candles came into general use, dis- 
placing the splinters of wood formerly used for lights. 
Leaden pipes, to convey water, were first used, and 
magic lanterns were introduced. 

The houses in London prior to this time Avere usu- 
ally thatched with straw, making them very inflam- 
mable; for this reason it was ordered that the houses 
of the city should be roofed Avith tiles or slate. 

The increasing wealth of the Church had produced 
the usual effect of rendering the monastic orders indo- 
lent and corrupt. They had almost ceased clerical 
work, and seemed only desirous of enjoying their 
riches in luxury and ease. But the evil led to its own 
reformation. A new order of monks called Friars 
(derived from the Norman-French Freres, or Breth- 
ren) sprang up, under vows of self-denial and devo- 
tion to all the duties of religion. They took the vow 
of poverty, and were maintained by the alms of the 
faithful. They preached the gospel, exhorted men to 
repentance, and their lives abounded in good works. 
The most famous of these friars was Roger Bacon, 
who endured hardship and suffering in ordor to i)r()- 
mote the intellectual culture of his felloAvs, and he 
may be called the first English scientist. His labors, 
so far Avas he in advance of his time, gave him a bad 
name. He Avas believed to be a magician, and Avas 
driven into exile and long imprisonment. His enthu- 
siasm, hoAvever, Avas not to be quenched, and in mathe- 



72 ENGLAND AND ITS KULEliS. 

matics aud the sciences lie added largely to the world's 
store of knowledge. Bacon is credited with the inven- 
tion of the camera-obscura, the air-pump, the diving- 
bell, magnifying lenses and gunpowder. But hoAvever 
this may be, it is quite certain he was the first to call 
the attention of the English people to them. Gun- 
powder could not have been Bacon's invention, as 
mention is made of it B. C. 355, and the use of rockets 
by the armies in India even ante-dates this. Tacitus 
also mentions gunpoAvder. 

Silver coins had been in use from the time of the 
Saxons; gold coinage began i)i this reign. 

In 1204 Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, 
known as " Sir Simon the Eighteous," brother-in-law 
of the King, with fifteen thousand Londoners (whose 
grievances becoming intolerable had compelled them to 
take up arms) and a number of barons, met Henry in 
battle at Lewes and gained a decisive victory. The 
Earl of Leicester, altlicnigh holding Henry as a ca[)- 
tive, took no unfair advantage; but as the head of the 
State, on January 22, 1265, called a parliament com- 
posed for the first time of two citizens from each city, 
two townsmen from each borough, and two knights 
from each county, all of whom were summoned to 
London to join tlio barons and clergy. Then were the 
people as such first represented in parliament. 

Louis, reinforced with recruits from France, Avas 
defeated at Lincoln MaA' I'J, 1217, and com- 

AA ;irs. • ' ' 

pelled to leave England. 
The barons, being displeased at the King's par- 
tiality for foreigners, planned a reA'olt headed by Simon 



THE ANGEVINS Oil PLANT AGENETS. 73 

de Moiitfort. The armies met at Lewes, Sussex, as 
before stated, when the King, his brotlier Richard 
and his sou Edward, were taken prisoners. Edward, 
however, effected his escape, collected an armj^ and 
fought the battle of Evesham, in "Worcestershire, 
August 4, 12(j5, in which De Montfort, together with 
his eldest son Henry and about one hundred and sixty 
knights and other gentlemen, were slain. The body 
of the fallen earl was frightfully mutilated, but his 
memory Avas long reverentially cherished by the 
English people, who regarded him as a martyr to 
the liberties of the realm. The battle resulted, how- 
ever, in the release of the King, and was followed 
by a reign of marked energy and vigor. 

Gilbert, Earl of Pembroke. Hubert de Burgh, 
Noted Earl of Kent, judge 121G, regent 1219, 

Persons. ^|-g^| 2243. Peter des Roches, a Poicteven, 
Bishop of Winchester 1205, died 1238. Simon 
de Montfort, Earl of Leicester 1200-1205, founder of 
the House of Commons. Roger Bacon, a philosopher 
1214-1292 or 1294. Matthew Paris, a monk, famous 
as an historian, 1195*-1259. Robert de Gloucester, 
author of a History of England in rhyme 1230-1285.* 
Gilbert de Preston, a lawyer, judge 1272, died 1274. 
St. Thomas Aquinas, a monk 1224*-1274. Sir John 
Baliol, founder of Baliol College, Oxford, died 1209. 
Henry de Bracton, judge 1245, Archdeacon of Barn- 
staple, died 1207. Gerald Barry [Oeraldus Cambren- 
sis), prelate and historian, 1140*-1224.* Robin Hood, 
outlaw, 1109-1247. Robert de Arundel, hebraist, 
died 1240. Walter de Berslede, celebrated judge, 



74 ENGLAND AND ITS IIULEKS, 

died 12G2. Hervins de Borliam, Dean of St. Paul's, 
1274, died 127(1 Kalpli de Coggeshalle, monkish 
chronicler, died 1228. Kichard, Earl Cromwell, son 
of King John, elected King of the Romans, 1209- 
1271. 



(.30) EDWARD I., 

SURNAMED LONGSHANKS. 

1-272 — 1,307. 

He was l)orn at Winchester June IP), 1280, and 
Birth aud was the eldest son of Henry III. and Elea- 

Parentago. ^^^^, 

He was crowned at Westminster August 10, 1274, 
Accession to immediately on his i-eturn from the Holy 

He reigned until 1307. 

He married Eleanor, daughter of Ferdinand III., 

„ . of Castile, in 1253. On Sei)tember 12, 

1200, he married Margaret, daugliter of 

Pliilip III., of France. Eleanor was crowned at the 

same time as Edward. 

By Eleanor he had four sons, including Edward 
II., who succeeded liim, and eleven daueh- 

Issuo. o 

ters, most of whom died young. By Mar- 
garet he liad Thomas, Edmund and Eleanor. 

He died of dysentery, at Burg-upon-Sands, July 7, 
jj^ 1307, while conducting his last campaign in 

Scotland, and was buried at Westminster. 
His last request was that his son Edward should push 
on the war. " Carry my bones before you on your 



THE ANGEVINS OR PLANTAGBNETS. 75 

march" said the dying King, "for the rebels can't 
endure the sight of me, living or dead." 

He was very tall and majestic, with regular and 
comely features. He possessed courage and 

Personal Ap- •' ^ . . . , . . 

pearance and penetration, but was ambitious, vindictive 

Character. -, i 

and cruel. 

Edward I. is entitled to rank among England's 
greatest monarchs for military talent, sound judgment, 
vigor and promptness of action. His firmness and 
decision of character are recognized by all students of 
history; but those other traits, already mentioned, 
in Avhicli he so closely resembled William the Con- 
queror, and especially his insatiable ambition, cast a 
ch)ud over his character, while his unholy crusade 
against the independence of Scotland will forever 
leave an indelible ])lot on his memory. 

Hoping to extinguish the spirit of liberty which 
Notable was fostercd by the AVelsh bards, he called 

Events. ^j^g,^^ togctlier at CouAvay, and caused all 

who came to be massacred. 

The eighth and last crusade in the Holy Land un- 
dertaken by Edward previous to his coming to the 
throne, ended in 1270. 

Westminster Abbey was finished in 1285. 

When a dispute arose between Baliol and Bruce, 
for the crown of Scotland, they referred it to Edward, 
who claimed the crown for himself, and in 1292 gave 
it to Baliol, as his vassal. He in turn revolted, but 
was met and defeated by Robert Bruce, grandson of 
his competitor, who was crowned King in 1306, and 
became one of Scotland's greatest monarchs. 



76 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

AVinclmills were introduced, and the mariner's com- 
pass invented by Flavio Gioia, of Naples. The art of 
making paper was brought from the east by the 
crusaders. Spectacles were first used in England. 
Wine was first sold as a cordial in the apothecaries' 
shops. In 1290 the Scottish regalia and crown 
jewels, and the coronation stone now in Westminster 
Abbey, were brought to England. 

In 128(3 Edward went to the continent to arrange 
terms of peace between Philip the Fair, of France, 
and Alonzo of Arag(m, and on his return, in 1289, 
found a sadly disordered kingdom. Robbery and 
violence prevailed, and Avent unpunished, owing to the 
corruption of the judiciary by bribery. To punish 
these judges a parliament was summoned, and heavy 
fines im[)osed upon them. 

Edward's reign will always be held iu dishonor for 
his tieatjuent of the Jews. Up to this time, "that 
unfortunate race had alwa3's been protected by the 
Kings of England, as men protect the cattle Avhich 
they fatten for slaughter." The ])opulace in 1290 
demanded their expulsion, claiming that their extor- 
tions and usury were ruining the country. Edward 
yielded to this demand, and after stri[)[)ing the Jews 
of their property, drove them into exile. Sixteen 
thousand were sent into banishment, and many per- 
ished. For more than four centuries thereafter the 
Jews ceased to be a power in England. 

Eleanor, Edward's wife, who by her devotion to 
her husband had won his warm love, and Avhen 
he was assassinated by a poisoned dagger, heroically 



THE ANGEVINS OE PLANTAGENETS. 77 

sucked the poison from the wound, died in 1290. 
The King testified to the affection ho bore her, by the 
thirteen crosses he erected to her memory. These 
were placed where her body was set down, in its transit 
from Grantham to Cliaring (now Cliaring Cross, the 
geographical center of London), its last station before 
gaining its final resting place in Westminster Abbey. 
Wax lights Avere kept constantly burning around her 
tomb for three hundred years. 

An additional clause was added to the great charter, 
forbidding the levying of taxes without the consent of 
parliament. 

Mei'chants from Lombardy settled in London, giv- 
ing the name to the street occupied by thorn. 

In 1'28'J England paid the last tribute money to 
the Pope. 

Parliament was in this reign remodeled into the 
form it has since retained. 

Improvements in commerce and agriculture, and 
the increase of the authority of commoners, are 
marked features of this reign. 

To conciliate the conquered Welsh, Edward had 
promised them a fellow-countryman to rule over them. 
His Queen being brought to l)ed at Caernarvon, the 
Avily King presented the son to Avhom she gave birth 
to the chieftains as their future prince. By the death 
of this prince's elder brother he afterAvards became 
King of England, and from that time the heir ap- 
parent to the throne has borne the title of Prince of 
Wales. 

With the Welsh Avas fouofht the battle of Lland- 



78 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

ilovawr, in Carmarthenshire, December 11, 1292, 
when their prince, Llewellyn, was drawn 

Wars. _ ^ •' 

into an ambush and slain. Wales be- 
came annexed to England in 1282. With France, 
1294; Peace, 1298. 

With Scotland, which was then nominally attached 
to the English crown as a conquered province. The 
battle of Falkirk was fought near Sterling, September 
11, 1297, when Cressingham, the treasurer, and five 
thousand English fell. 

Llewellyn ap Gryfydd (or Llewellyn, Prince o£ 
Noted Wales) ^ 1224^1282. Eobert Bruce, King 

Persons. ^f Scotlaud, 1274-1329. Eleanor of Pro- 
vence, Consort of Henry III., 1221-1291. Sir William 
Wallace, Scotch warrior, 12(33 or 70-1305. Aymar de 
Valence and Hugh de Cressingham, Treasurer, lead- 
ers at Falkirk, where both were killed, 1297. So 
odious was Cressingham to the Scots, that they flayed 
his dead body, using his skin to make into saddles and 
girths. Richard Abyndon, Baron of the Exchequer, 
died 1307. John Baliol, claimant to the Scottish crown 
(1291-6), 1259-1314. AValter Giffard, Bishop of 
Bath in 1205, Archbishop of York in 1200, political 
writer, died 1279. William de Hamilton, Dean of 
York and Lord Chancellor 1304, died 1307. Johan- 
nes Duns Scotus, scholar and divine, 1265 or 72-1308. 



THE ANGEVINS OR PLANTAGENETS. 79 

(31) EDWARD II., 

SURNAMED CAERNARVON. 

1307 — 1327. 

He was born at Caernarvon August 25, 1284, and 
Birth and was the eldest surviving son of Edward I. 
Parentage. ^^^| Eleauor o£ Castile, and the first Eng- 
lish Prince of Wales. 

Accession to He was crowned at Westminster July 8, 

the Throne. ^^gQr^^ ^i^^ j^y following his father's death. 

He married Isabella, daucjhter of Philip 

Marriage. . 

IV. of France, surnamed Le Bel, in 1308. 
Edward; John of Eltliam, who died young; Jane, 
married to David II., of Scotland; and 

Issue. 

Eleanor. 
He was atrociously murdered in Berkeley Castle, 
Gloucestershire, by order of Roger Morti- 

Death. . . 

mer. Earl of March, witli the connivance of 
his Queen " the she- wolf of France," and was pri- 
vately buried in Gloucestershire, September 21, 1327. 
In person he resembled his father, but in character 
, , inherited all his defects, without his virtues. 

Personal Ap- ' 

pearanceand He was cruel and illiberal, without valor or 

C/lmrnctcr • -»-« 

capacity. Fickle, indolent and irresolute, 
he owed his tragic end to the infidelity of Queen Isa- 
bella, and his partiality for worthless favorites. 

He made himself so odious to the barons, by pan- 

Notabie dering to the insolence and rapacity of his 

vents. grasping favorites, that they rebelled against 

him, and, aided by the Queen, drove him into Wales. 

There he was seized by the Earl of Leicester, impris- 



80 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

oned in Kenilwortli Castle, and compelled to resign 
his crown. He was afterwards removed to Berkeley, 
where he was murdered. The infamous conduct of 
Queen Isabella had contributed even more to the dis- 
quiet of the realm. She escaped from England, and 
her residence in Paris became the sanctuai-y for Brit- 
ish malcontents, who flocked around her in great 
numbers, chief among them being Pvoger Mortimer, 
Earl of March, who had the disgraceful pre-eminence 
of being her paramour. 

Edward was the first English King who was de- 
posed by his subjects. In this reign the House of 
Commons began to impose conditions upon all bills 
by which they granted subsidies. This was the first 
material advance in the exercise of legislative author- 
ity. About this time Southwark, which had been the 
resort of desperadoes, was joined to London, and 
placed under the authority of the mayor and aldermen. 

The Lollards, a sect of religionists, who rejected 
the Boman Catholic rites of high mass, extreme unc- 
tion and penance, arose in this reign. Earthenware 
was introduced in 1309; the Knights Templars were 
suppressed in England and elsewhere in 1310, and 
the university of Dublin was founded in 1319. 

A serious famine occurred in this reign, and the 
people were left almost destitute. Interest upon money 
reached the fabulous rate of forty-five per cent, per 
annum. 

In 1314 the war ao^ainst Scotland was 

Wars. ^ 

renewed, and the famous battle of Bannock- 
burn, near Sterling, was won by the Scots June 



THE ANGEVINS OR PLANTAGENETS. 81 

25, of that year, under Robert Bruce, and Edward was 
utterly routed, with great loss. 

A rebellion, headed by the Earl of Lancaster, was 
quelled at Boroughbridge, in Yorkshire, March IG, 
1322, and its leader executed. 

Pierre Gaveston, a favorite of Edward II., executed 
Noted 1312. Hugh Despencer (de Spencer), judge, 

Persons. .^^^j ill-fated favorite of Edward II., executed 
132C. Henry, Earl of Lancaster, prime minister, 
1281-13-45. Roger Mortimer, Earl of March, par- 
amour of Queen Isabella, born about 1287, hanged in 
1330, reign of Edward III. Robert Barton, a Car- 
melite friar, poet-laureate and historian, whom Edward 
had taken to Bannockburn to celebrate his victory. 
He fell into the hands of the Scots, who compelled 
him to write verses upon Edward's being deposed. 
William, Earl of Pembroke, died 1321. W. de Ever- 
don, Baron of the Exchequer, died 1327. Thomas de 
la Hyde, judge in 1305, died 1315. 



(32) EDWARD III., 

SURNAMED WINDSOR. 

1.327 — 1377. 

Edward III. was born at Windsor November 13, 
Birth and 1312, and was the son of Edward II. and 

Parentage. Isabella. 

Although a minor, he was by act of Parliament 
Accession to recoguized as the successor of his father, 
theTiirone. ^^^^j c^o^yi^ed at Westminster February 2, 
1327, and by the same act a Privy Council of twelve 



82 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

persons was named to direct the operations of the 
government. 

He married Pliilippa, daughter of William, Earl of 
Hainault and Holland, January 24, 1328. 

Marriage. . . 

She was crowned Queen at Westminster in 
April 1329. 

Edward, called the Black Prince, from the color of 
his armor; Lionel, Duke of Clarence, from 

Issue. ' ' 

whom sprang the House of York; John of 
Gaunt, or Ghent, the place of his birth, irom whom 
descended the House of Lancaster. He also had six 
other children. 

Edward, the Black Prince, died of consumption in 
^ , June 1376. His father survived him only 

Death. _ *' 

a year, dying June 21, 1377, at Sheen, and 
was buried at Westminster. His death was doubt- 
less hastened by the loss of his favorite son. 

A large man, with broad shoulders, and a bright, 
, . encraofinff face. He was magnanimous and 

Personal Ap- & &> o ^ ^ » 

pearauceand merciful, virtues in that day very rare. The 
English regard with peculiar fondness this 
reign, as one of the longest and most glorious in their 
annals. Edward's success in France, as well as his 
domestic government, endeared him to his subjects. 
England, through the prudence and vigor of his ad- 
ministration, enjoyed a longer interval of domestic 
peace and tranquillity than she had been blessed with 
at any former period. He proved himself the greatest 
warrior that ever sat upon the English throne. Mr. 
Turner, in speaking of the reign of Edward IIL, says: 
" During this reign our navy established its pre- 



THE ANGEVINS OR PLANTAGENETS. 83 

ponderance over the most celebrated fleets that were 
accustomed to navigate the British channel; our 
Parliament enjoyed, in full and upright exercise, those 
constitutional powers which the nation has long learnt 
to venerate as its best inheritance; .... our manu- 
factures and commerce began to exhibit an affluence 

and an expanding growth; the lineaments 

of our prose literature became distinctly discernible; 
the pursuit of mathematical and natural sciences 

were successful; and our poetry 

assumed an attractive form." .... 

Sir Matthew Hale is the authority for saying that 
during this reign " law was greatly improved, and 
mostly reached its meridian," while the monarch him- 
self kept pace with the progress of the time, and left 
his country ennobled in the eyes of Europe, and capa- 
ble of realizing the glorious destinies which awaited 
her. 

During the King's minority his mother and Mor- 
Notabie timer governed, but the nation was so dis- 
Events. satisfied Avith their conduct that the Queen 

was imprisoned at Nottingham Castle, and Mortimer 
hanged, in 1330. 

Edward's first independent act was an attempt to 
raise Edward Baliol to the throne of Scotland; but in 
this he failed. 

The crown of France was his next ambition, in 
which he was opposed by Philip of Valois, son of a 
brother of the late King of France. Edward claimed 
the crown of France in right of his mother, 1337. 
According to English law the son of a daughter pre- 



84 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

cedes the nephew in inheritance, but the French Salic 
law excluded females. The French state and lawyers 
decided in favor of PJiilip of Valois. Bv doing homage 
to Philip, for the duchy of Guienne, Edward gained 
the needed time to collect an army and treasure to 
invade Fi'ance i^sec W(irs). Calais surrendered to his 
arms August 4, 1347, after a vigorous siege of eleven 
months. 

John, King of France, Avas taken at Poitiers, 
brought to England in 1357, where he was detained a 
prisoner until his death, in the spring of 1304. David 
of Scotland was also prisoner in England for eleven 
years. 

Cannon were invented by Schwartz, a monk of 
Cologne, about 1330, and first used at Crecy for throw- 
ing iron projectiles. The order of the garter was 
instituted in DUD, and three ostrich feathers, with tlie 
words " Ich Dien " (I serve), introduced as the Prince 
of Wales' crest. 

Edward assumed the title of King of France (which 
British monarchs for some time retained), and quar- 
tered with his own arms the Jlcur de lis of France. 

A most terrible pestilence, called the "black death," 
raged throughout Euro[)e, doing more injury than the 
calamitous Avars. 

The art of Aveavi ng cloth Avas introduced from 
Flanders in 1349, and Thomas Blanket, of Bristol, 
made looms for weaving woolen cloths which still bear 
his name. St. Stephen's Chapel, used by the House 
of Commons, was erected, and the "Speaker" first 
appointed. The Lords and Commons until this time 



THE ANGEVINS OR PLANTAGENETS. 85 

had sat in the same room, but from that period occu- 
pied distiuct chambers. 

The order of Knights Templars having been 
suppressed in 1310, tlieir buihling, knoAvn as the 
Temple, was during this reign converted into a 
residence for law students, and ultimately became an 
" Inn of Court." Windsor was changed from a fortress 
to a roval residence. The Prince of Wales was s^iven 
the title of Duke of Cornwall, this being the first title 
of Duke conferred in England. 

Edward, the Black Prince, after a Spanish cam- 
paign in which he Avon the celebrated battle of Nava- 
rete, returned to England. Thirty years of Avar and 
exposure had so exhausted his naturally strong C(ui- 
stitution that he died of consumption in June 1370, in 
the forty-sixth year of his age. He acquired a lofty 
reputation for personal bravery, skill as a gen- 
eral, generosity as a knight, and Avisdom as a states- 
man. 

With the Scots, battle of HallidoAvn Hill, July 19, 
1333, near BerAvick, Avhere thirty thousand 

Wars. ' ' •{ 

Scots, and fifteen thousand English fell. 

Battle of Neville Cross, in Durham, conducted l)y 
Queen Philippa, October 17, 1340, Avhen David II., 
King of the Scots, Avas defeated and taken prisoner. 

EdAvard sailed for AntAverp in July, 1338, and in 
the following year invaded France. His first cam- 
paign was unimportant, but having achieved a great 
naval victory June 22, 1340, he was inspired to 
march to Tournay, Avhich city he besieged Avith an 
array of one hundred thousand men. The siege, 



so ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

liowever, proved unsuccessful, and the English were 
compelled to retire. 

Seizing upon the disputed succession to the duchy 
of Brittany as a pretext, Edward again invaded France, 
in 134('), and a series of glorious triumphs for the 
English arms followed. 

The two famous battles of Cr^cy, August 25, 13-46, 
and Poitiers, September 19, 1356, distinguished this 
reign. In both these battles the French armies, on 
their own soil, were defeated by far inferior numbers. 
The English hosts were led at the battle of Cr^cy by 
the Black Prince, then only sixteen years of age. His 
success was largely due to the English archers, 
whose shots were so rapid " that it seemed as if it 
snowed," as well as to the employment of cannon, then 
for the first time used by the English in warfare. 
At the ])attle of Poitiers the British numbered 
eight thousand, and the French sixty thousand, and 
at Crecy the disparity was nearly as great. In 
this battle the slain of the French amounted to 
thirty-one thousand and two hundred, a nund)er ecpial 
to the Avhole English force. 

Joan [ilie fair Mnid of Kent), who married Ed- 
Notod ward, the Black Prince, about 1365, died 

rorsons. ^^3^5 Edw.'u-d [Jlw. Bluck Priiicc), 1330- 
1376. Sir Walter Manny, warrior, founder of the 
Priory of Chartreux, su1)sequently Charter House 
Scliool, died 1372. Sir John Chandos, warrior, Con- 
stable of Guienne, died 1360. Sir John de Mande- 
ville, traveller an<l author, 1300^1372. Ptobert 
Belknap, Chief Justice of the Common Pleas, died 



THE ANGEVINS OR PLANTAGENETS. ' 87 

1377. John Beaucliamp, Lord Higli Admiral, died 
1350. Blanche, wife of John of Gaunt, died 13G9. 
Henry de Cliffe, Master of the Rolls and Keeper of 
the Great Seal, in 1328, died 1334.' Edmund Planta- 
genet. Earl of Kent, second son of Edward I., 1302- 
1329. Henry Spigurnell, judge in 1307, died 1328. 
David de Wellore, Master of the Rolls in 1345, died 
1370. 



(33) RICHARD II., 

SURNAMED BORDEAUX. 

1377 — 1399. 

Richard II., son of the Black Prince and Joan, 
Birth aad " //'(' /<"*'»' mftid of Keuf,'''' was born at Bor- 
Parontage. ^^^^^^^ January 0, 1300. 

He ascended the throne June 22, 1377, when but 
Accession to eleven years of age, and was crowned July 
the Throne. ^^0, 1378. The Dukes of Lancaster, York 
and Gloucester, uncles of the King, with some other 
noblemen, were appointed regents during Richard's 
minority. 

He married, January 1382, Anne of Luxembourg, 
daughter of Emperor Charles IV., sister 

Marriage. - ' 

of tlie Emperor Winceslaus, of Germany. 
She died August 3, 1395. After her death, on 
November 1, 139(5, he espoused Isabella, daughter of 
Charles VI., of France. 

Issue. He had no issue by either wife, 

jj ^^ He was murdered, or, more probably, 

starved to death, February 14, 1399, in 
Pontefract Castle, Yorkshire. His ashes now rest in 



88 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

AVestminster Abbey, whither his remains were removed 
by order of Henry V. 

He was rather beneath the ordinary size, thin, with 
_ , , n swarthy face, black eyes and hair. 

Personal Ap- *• ' '' 

pcarancoand His character was marked by pusillan- 
imity and selfishness; although at times 
brave, he was generally weak, frivolous and inconstant. 

In 1381 it was resolved to levy a poll tax on each 
Notable persou over fifteen years of age. In conse- 
Events. quence there broke out in Essex an insur- 

rection of the peasantry, whose object was to redress 
this most oppressive taxation. Headed by Wat Tyler 
and Jack Straw, they gathered one hundred thousand 
strong at Blackheath, and marched to Smithfield. The 
insurrection was at first restrained l)y the wise conduct 
of the young King, who [)romised redress; and finally 
quelled by Sir William Walworth, the Mayor of Lon- 
don, who, with his own dagger, struck doAvn Tyler. 
After the death of their leader the rebels dispersed. 
The Duke of Gloucester, charged with treason, was 
seized, imprisoned at Calais, and there murdered, in 
1398, at the instigation of his nephew, it is sup- 
posed. 

The Dukes of Hereford and Norfolk having quar- 
reled, Eichard decreed that they should decide the 
dispute by single combat. On entering the lists they 
were banished; Hereford for nine years and Norfolk 
for life; but on becoming Duke of Lancaster, by the 
death of his father John of Gaunt, Hereford invaded 
England, was joined by the nobles, and on the depo- 
sition of Eichard was proclaimed King. 



THE ANGEVINS OR PLANTAGENETS. 89 

Peers were made by patent ; Lord Beauchamp being 
the first person advanced to the upper house in this 
manner. Richard II. built tlie present Westminster 
Hall in 1399, John Kotteville being the architect. 
Bills of exchange came into commercial use. Playing 
cards were introduced from China, where they had 
been in use for nearly two thousand years. 

Bichard II. lived in a more magnificent style than 
any of his predecessors. His household consisted of 
ten thousand persons. He had three hundred servants 
in his kitchen alone, and all other departments of his 
palace were supplied in the same proportion. 

In this reign the wool trafiic, which before that 
period had been entirely conducted at Westminster, 
was transferred by royal edict to Staple Inn, Hol])oi-n 
(London), built in 1378. 

The Earl of March, a relative of the Kin«r, and 
his lieutenant in Ireland, having been slain by the 
natives, Bichard went thither with a considerable 
army to avenge his death. The Kijig, allured by the 
seeming desire of the Duke of Hereford, afterward 
Henry IV., to effect a reconciliation, started in 
disguise for the fortress of CouAvay, in Wales. But 
during the journey he was made a prisoner, and finally 
committed to the Tower to aAvait the judgment of 
Parliament. On Monday September 29, 1399, a depu- 
tation of Lords and Commons waited upon him, and 
demanded a fulfilment of his promise to resign the 
crown. To this he consented, according to chroniclers, 
" with a cheerful countenance." Later he was re- 
Tnpvecl to Pontefract Castle, Yorkshire, where he 



90 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

met liis death. Thus terminated the line of Planta- 
genet Kings. 

John of Gaunt, 1340-1399; Henry Bolingbroke, 
Noted ^^^^ ^^^'■> Edmund Plantagenet, fifth son 

Persons. of Edward III., Duke of York, 1341-1-402; 
Thomas Plantagenet, son of Edward III., Duke of 
Gloucester, 1355-1397, protectors. Robert De Vere, 
Earl of Oxford, the favorite of Richard II., died 
1349.* William Walworth, Lord Mayor of London, 
1374 and 1380. Wat Tyler, died 1381. William of 
AVykeham, 1324-1404, Chancellor and Bishop of 
AVinchester, founder of Winchester School, in 1387, 
and of Merton College, Oxford; he was also distin- 
guished for piety and love of learning and taste for 
architecture; he built a great portion of Windsor 
Castle. Froissart, 1337 to 1401, historian. John 
Wyckliffe, 1324-1387, '-the morning star of the re- 
formation." He was buried in his church, at Lut- 
terworth, Avliere his bones rested until 1428, when by 
an order from the Pope they were taken up and 
destroyed. Chaucer, "the poet of gladness," 1328- 
1400. John Gower, 1320^1402. Anne, wife of Ptich- 
ard 11, 1307-1394. 



HISTORICAL MEMORANDA CONNECTED WITH THE 
LINE OF PLANTAGENET. 

It was during this period that the Constitution 
which exists to-day, and which has preserved its iden- 
tity through all changes, had its origin. The House 
of Commons, as representative of the people, held 



THE ANGEVINS OR TLANTAGENETS. 91 

its first sittings, and the common law evolved into a 
science. At this time commenced the dominion upon 
the sea, which has made the flag of England respected ; 
and what is more important, some of the most ancient 
colleges which still exist, at both the great national 
seats of learning, were founded. " Then," says Ma- 
caulay, " was formed that language, less musical indeed 
than the languages of the South, but in force, in rich- 
ness, in aptitude for all the highest purposes of the 
poet, the philosopher and the orator, inferior to that 
of Greece alone. Then, too, appeared the first dawn 
of that noble literature, the most splendid and most 
durable of the many glories of England." 

Chaucer, as the first great poet of the nation, m-ade 
this period illustrious in literature. 

Robin Hood, in the twelfth century, lived in Sher- 
wood forest, tlien comprising nearly the whole of the 
northern |)art of Nottinghamshire. The band of this 
famous outlaw consisted of one hundred men, who for 
skill in archery and soldierly accomplishments were 
unequaled in England. Their dress was of Lincoln 
green, the color of the grass, which often enabled 
them to avoid discovery. They spared and protected 
the poor, levying tribute only on the rich. Robin 
Hood reached the ripe age of eighty-seven, when 
desiring medical attention, he sought it at the 
monastery of Kirkstall, in Yorkshire, but was be- 
trayed and bled to deatli by a monk. 

A glimpse at the rude style of living in the days of 
Henry II. is given by an old writer. He says that the 
apartments of Thomas & Becket, who rivaled royalty in 



92 ENGLAND AND ITS RULEES. 

the splendor of his living, were every day strewn with 
clean straw or hay, and in summer with green boughs 
or rushes, lest the nobles and gentlemen who crowded 
to his presence, but could not obtain a seat at table, 
should soil their clothes- by sitting on the floor. 

Knowledge of all kinds, and even the arts of reading 
and writing, were confined almost entirely to the clergy, 
who consequently were the only lawyers and physi- 
cians, and who practiced their professions in such a 
way as to enrich themselves, both by the diseases and 
misfortunes of their parishioners. Their little knowl- 
edge gave them power over those who had none. 

Gardening and agriculture owed much to the 
monks. Every monastery had its garden, where 
grapes and fruits of all kinds were cultivated with 
great skill. The secret of these twin arts, brought 
from France, soon spread through England. Wine 
almost equal to that of the continent was manufactured 
at this time. 

Architecture also made great progress, as every 
one will admit who has gazed with admiration on the 
cathedrals of York, Salisbury and Winchester, and 
other Gothic structures of this period. 

In the fourteenth century, Queen Philippa, who was 
a native of the province adjoining Flanders, induced 
skilled Flemish workmen to come over, and establish 
woolen factories at Norwich, and other towns in the 
east of England. Thus was laid the foundation of 
one of England's greatest industries, and wool has 
from that time been considered a chief source of na- 
tional wealth. Later, as a reminder of it, a square 



THE ANGEVINS OR PLANTAGENETS. 93 

crimson bag filled with wool, known as the "Wool- 
sack," became and continues to be the seat of the Lord 
Chancellor in the House of Lords. 

During the Angei^in period the Popes endeavored 
to introduce the canon law into England, but Parlia- 
ment refused to accept it, saying, " We will not 
change the laws of England." The papal dominion in 
England grew weaker and weaker, and the sending of 
money to support foreign ecclesiastics was almost 
entirely discontinued. Two military orders, Knights 
Hospitalers and Knights Templars, were established; 
the former to provide food for pilgrims going to Jeru- 
salem, and the latter to protect them. 

So great extravagance and luxury prevailed in 
dress, that Parliament passed laws to restrain it. The 
eccentric and fantastic dress of the English beau of 
the fourteenth century is very remarkable. His shoes 
had long pointed toes, turned upward and fastened at 
the knees by gold and silver chains. His coat was 
one half white and the other half blue or some fancy 
color ; his beard as long as nature consented to make it 
grow, and he wore a silk hood or helmet embroidered 
in colors representing birds, animals and grotesque 
figures. The ladies Avere equally remarkable. 
Their hair was drawn to a peak over a frame, 
shaped like the horn of a Unicorn. The use of the 
side - saddle by ladies was first introduced in the 
reia^n of Richard II. But aside from that, the art of 
living was most crude and primitive. The richest had 
hardly any furniture in tiieir houses, which were far 
from cleanly, and consequently proved a prolific cause 



94 ENGLAND AND ITS RULEKS. 

of sickness. The streets of London were very narrow, 
iinpaved and unliglited. Pools of stagnant water, and 
piles of refuse in them, were not infrequent. Drain- 
age was not yet known, and the crows were the only 
scavengers. The houses were built with projecting 
stories, so that at the top they almost met over the 
streets. The great cities were nurseries of the plague, 
and subject to destructive fires by which they were 
often devastated. 

The home trade of the country was largely con- 
ducted at great fairs, which, by royal license, were 
carried on at regular times. Guilds of all kinds were 
formed, and associations of merchants, of craftsmen 
and traders, for common protection, Ivecame a neces- 
sity. 

The foundinfT of Merton College, bv Sir Walter de 
Merton, in 1204 (removed to Oxford in 1274), and of 
AVinchester College and New College, by William of 
Wykeham, in the reign of Edward III., gave a great 
im[)ulse to the cause of education. 

During the reign of Edward III. a book of travels 
by Sir John de Mandeville was published. He had 
journeyed in the East for more than thirty years, 
and when he returned to England he wrote, in Latin, 
an account of his experience. AfterAvards he translated 
it into French, that the nobles might read it, and 
lastly into English (the first prose written in that 
language), for the benefit of the common people. 
Soon after appeared Wyckliffe's translation of the 
bible from the Latin version, and Chaucer's Canter- 
bury Tales, the first great poem of the language. 



was 



THE ANCtEYINS OR PLANTAGENETS. 95 

The wealth and power of the Church at this time 
so o-reat as to be almost incredible. One- 



fourth of the area of London is said to have been 
occupied by its churches, cathedrals, monasteries, con- 
vents and houses of various kinds. London had one 
hundred and twentj^ parish churches, besides religious 
houses. Norwich had sixty, York fifty-five, and other 
cities in proportion. Says Besant: "Every street 
had its parish church, with charities, fraternities and 
endowments; colleges, houses for priests; while alm- 
eries and hospitals were scattered all about the city. 
AYithin and without the wall were fifteen great houses 
whose splendor can be understood only by the ruins of 
Tintern, Glastonbury, Fountains, and Whitby. Every 
house Avas possessed of rich manors and broad lands; 
every house had its treasury, filled with title deeds 
as well as with heaps of gold and silver plate ; every 
house had its church crowded with marble monu- 
ments and adorned with rich shrines, and blazing 
altars and painted glass, such as we can no longer 
make." 

In the course of the fourteenth century the Anglo- 
Saxon gradually became transformed into what may 
be termed the English language, through the Normans 
coming in contact with the common people. 

Mr. Tytler says, "From evidence collected from 
original records, it appears that Eichard II. lived 
for many years in Scotland, and Avas supported at 
public expense in that country," after he was sup- 
posed to have perished in Pontefract Castle, by the 
"fierce hand of St. Piers of Exton," or by famine, 



96 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

having escaped in disguise, and tied to the Scottish 
Isles; and that he died idtimately in Stirling Castle, 
and was buried there. Had not this singular 
legend been introduced in a history of Scotland, it 
would not here be named. 



1399 — 1461. 
HOUSE OF LANCASTER. 

(34) HENRY IV., 

SURNAMKD BOLINGBKOKE. 
1399 — 1413. 

Henry was born at Bolingbroke, in Lincolnshire, 
Birth and ^^^ 136(^ and was the eldest son of John 
Parentage, of Gaunt, aud grandson of Edward III. 

He Avas crowned at Westminster October 13, 1399. 
Accession to Tlie nearest heir to the throne was Edinnnd 
theThrouo. Mortimer, the lineal descendant of Lionel, 
Duke of Clarence, third son of Edward III. The 
misgovernment of the kingdom by protectors, during 
the minority of Hichard II., induced Parliament to 
set aside the claim of Mortimer, and accept Henry's 
bold demand for the crown. 

He was twice married; first, in 1391:, to Mary de 
Boliun, daughter of Humphrey, Earl of 

Marriage. ^ ^ i ^ ' 

Hereford; she died before Henry came to 

the throne; and afterwards, in 1403, to Jane, or Joan, 

daughter of Charles the Bold, King of Navarre, and 

widow of John V., Duke of Bretagne. She died in 1437. 

By his fii'st wife only: Henry; Thomas, Duke 

of Clarence; John, Duke of Bedford: 

Issue. ' 

Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester; Blanche, 
and Philippa. 

97 



98 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Heart-sick with continued reverses, lie died, after 
intervals of unconsciousness, in the Jerusa- 

Death. 

lem Chamber, Westminster, March 20, 1413, 
and was buried at Canterbury. Whilst the King Avas 
supposed to be dead, Prince Henry removed the crown 
from the room. His father reviving, complained of 
the act, and when Henry expressed sorrow for the 
mistake, the King said: "Alas, my son, what right 
have you to the crown, when you know your father 
had none?" "My liege," answered the Prince, "with 
your sword you won it, and Avitli my sword I will 
keep it." " Well," replied the King, " do as you 
please, — I leave the issue to God, and hope he will 
have mercy on my soul." Robert Fabian, an alder- 
man, and sheriff of London, as well as a poet and 
historian, in his famous " Concordance of Stories," 
records the following in regard to Henry's last illness: 
" At length, Avhen he had come to himself, not know- 
ing where he was, freyned (inquired) of such as were 
there about him .... ' Whereunto it Avas?' They 
answered, 'that it (the chamber) was named Jerusa- 
lem.' Then the King said: 'Loving be to the Father 
of Heaven, for now I know I shall die in this chamber, 
according to the prophecy of me before said, that I 
should die in Jerusalem.' " 

Henry was of medium height, of a no])le, pleasant 
, , countenance, and was skilled in all warlike 

Personal Ap- ' 

pearanceand exercises. Crafty and subtle, Avith smooth 

and Avinning manners, a thorough soldier 

and politician, he Avas able to maintain by his skill 

and address that Avhich he had unlawfully ()])tained. 



HOUSE OF LANCASTER. 09 

He won the love of liis people by liis courtly manners, 
and liis evident desire for their happiness. The stain, 
however, upon Henry's rule was his fierce and inhuman 
urging of papal doctrines, and the persecution of the 
Lollards and the followers of Wyckliffe, who suffered 
at Smithfield. Full power was given to the Bishops to 
pursue even to the flames all persons infected with 
heretical teachings, and it was most cruelly and vigor- 
ously exercised. 

Soon after Henry's accession, a conspiracy was or- 
Notabie gauizcd to restore Richard, still a prisoner 
Events. -^^ Poutcfract Castle ; but it was soon sup- 

pressed. When a month later Richard was found 
dead, Henry had his ghastly remains brought to Lon- 
don, and exposed to view in St. Paul's cathedral, in 
order that the uselessness of further effort to restore 
him might be obvious to all. 

Henry brought to the stake, in 1401, the Rev. Sir 
William Sautre, rector of St. Oswytli, London, who 
was the first English martyr to suffer' death by fire. 

Henry, Prince of Wales, who was accustomed to 
associate with low com[)any, struck Chief Justice Gas- 
coigne with his sword for administering justice to 
some of Henry's robber friends. For this offence the 
Prince was reprimanded by Gascoigne, and sent to 
]>rison. His father hearing it exclaimed, "Happy the 
King whose magistrate dares enforce the law, and 
still happier he who has a son willing to submit to it." 

The order of the Bath was instituted at Henry's 
coronation. 

In 1404 the right of a younger son to succeed as 



100 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

ruler in case of the death of his elder brother, was 
recognized by Parliament. 

Cannon were first used in England at the siege of 
Berwick, in 1405. 

Thirty thousand persons died of the plague in 1407. 

The Scots making incursions into England, Robert 
III. Avas summoned to do homaije for his 

Wars. ^ 

crown, but refused. Thereujjon the Earl of 
Douglas invaded England, and was repulsed by the 
Percys of Northumberland; second battle of Halli- 
down Hill, September 25, 1402. The resentment of 
the Percys was excited by the King denying 
thom the privilege to liberate or ransom their pris- 
oners. 

The Perc3's, who considered themselves much ag- 
grieved by Henry's conduct toward them, assisted by 
Owen Glendower, the descendant of a Welsh Prince, 
rebelled in favor of Mortimer, Earl of March. But 
after an obstinate fight the rebels were defeated at 
Battlefield, near Shrewsbury, July 21, 1403, Henry 
Percy, surnamed Hotspur, being slain and his party 
dispersed. The King was accompanied by Prince 
Henry, his son, who on this field began his glorious 
military career. 

Scrope, Archbishop of York, and the Earl of Not- 
tingham, partisans of the Percy's, rebelled in 1405, 
but Avere taken prisoners by stratagem, and beheaded. 
The Earl of Northumberland, on hearing of the death 
of his friends, fled into Scotland, and thence to Wales. 
In 1408, however, he returned to the North, and 
made another attack on the power of Henry, but 



HOUSE OF LANCASTER. 101 

was thoroughly defeated. Scrope was the first arch- 
bishop executed in England for treason. 

Guildhall, in the City of London, was commenced 
in 1411. 

Henry Percy, called Hotspur, 1854-1403. Sir 
Noted William Gascoigne, 1350-1413. The Rev- 

Persons. g^.^^^j gj^. William Sautre, executed 1401. 
(The title "Sir" was formerly given to clergymen 
who had attained a University degree.) Elizabeth of 
France, wife of Richard XL, 1389-1400. Thomas of 
Lancaster, Duke of Clarence, died 1404. Richard of 
Cirencester, historian, 1330-1401. John Montacute, 
Earl of Salisbury, executed 1400. John de Scarle, 
Lord Chancellor, died 1403. Richard Scrope, Prelate 
and Lord Chancellor, executed 1405. Edmund 
Plantagenet, Duke of York, fifth son of Edward III., 
1341-1402. 



(3.-)) HENRY v., 

SURNAMED MONMOUTH. 

1413 — 1422. 

Henry V., born at Monmouth in 1388, was the 
Birth and eldest SOU of King Henry IV., by his first 

Parentage. ^^^fg^ j^j.^^.y ^|g BollUn. 

Accession to He Avas crowned at AVestminster April 9, 

the Throne. . I4I Q 

He married. May 30, 1420, Catharine of France, 
who was crowned Queen at Westminster 

Marriage. , ^ ,„^ 

February 4, 1421. 

He had one son, Henry, afterwards 
Henry VI. 



102 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Henry died at Yiiiceiiues August 31, 1422, His 

body was removed with great pomp to Eng- 

land, and buried at Westminster, where for 

nearly one hundred years tapers were constantly 

burned at his tomb. 

The exterior of this great prince was very attract- 
, . ive. His stature was above the middle size; 

Personal Ap- 
pearance and his countenance handsome; his well-made 

limbs were slender but full of vigor, and his 
form had been perfected by manly and warlike exercises. 
As a warrior and ruler he Avas superior to his pre- 
decessors. His boldness in conceiving enterprises 
was not less conspicuous than his personal valor in 
conducting them. He was a warm friend; a magnan- 
imous and forgiving enemy, and he secured the 
res[)ect of both English and French by his care in 
maintaining justice in his civil administration, and dis- 
cipline in his armies. He was a devout man, adding 
to his own and his army's courage by a strong faith 
in the divine protection, ever openly and clearly mani- 
fested. Ambition was united with modesty, and he 
presented the rare combination of royalty and humility. 
He was the favorite of his people, and his character 
is held in great esteem by all lovers of Eng- 
lish history. His youth, with Avliich Shakespeare 
has made us acquainted, was Avild and dissipated, but 
when he ascended the throne he assumed and ever 
maintained a character, sedate, noble and kingly. 
Notable % ^^^ treaty of Troyes, in 1420, Henry 

Events. agreed to espouse the Princess Catharine, 

leaving her father, Charles, in the enjoyment of the 



HOUSE or LANCASTER. 103 

French crown during his life-time, with Henry as 
regent, and as the acknowledged successor to the 
throne, uniting France and England thereafter under 
one ruler. 

A few days later, he assumed command of the 
government of France, at Paris, and procured from 
Parliament and the Estates a ratification of the treaty 
of Troy es. {See Wars.) 

A ship one hundred and eighty-six feet in length 
was built at Bayonne, by order of Henry. The Eng- 
lish navy was greatly indebted to this monarch for his 
fostering care, which may be said to have laid the 
foundation of England's naval power. Before this 
time, Avhen a fleet was gathered, it was composed 
of merchant ships, or ships hired from abroad. 

A licfhted candle in a lantern was ordered to l)e 
placed over every doorway during the winter months, 
and from this ultimately came the custom of lighting 
the streets of London. 

Holborn, in London, was first paved witli stone. 

Guihlhall, in the city, was finally completed, and 
the Staple Inn became an Inn of Court. 

The King, to raise money for his foreign wars, 
pawned the crown jewels for twenty thousand pounds. 

The nobility began to build country residences, in 
place of their moated castles. These residences were 
of carved wood with spacious halls, hung with 
tapestry. The floors were covered with rushes, and 
in most cases the fire-])lace was in the middle of 
the room. 

A flock bed and bolster Avere considered to be the 



10-i ENGLAND AND ITS EULERS. 

height of luxury. The beds of the middle classes were 
of straw, covered Avith a sheet, and having a log of 
wood for a pillow. 

At the time of Henry's accession to tlie throne, 
France was devastated by the wars of Bur- 

vVars. *' 

gundy and Orleans. The City of Paris was 
a perpetual scene of blood and violence, where no 
man's rights of person or property were respected. 
Tlie weakness of both parties was so apparent, that 
Henry determined to improve so favorable an oppor- 
tunity for conquest; and he therefore determined to 
carry violent war into a kingdom Avliich he thought 
would be an easy prey. He demanded the hand of 
Catharine, the French King's daughter, together with 
three million six hundred thousand crowns, the sover- 
eignty of Normandy and other provinces, which Philip 
Augustus had ravished from England, all of which 
demands were declined. Henry thereupon assembled 
a great fleet and army at Southampton, l)ut, owing to 
a conspiracy of Sir Thomas Grey, the Earl of Cam- 
bridge, and Lord Scrope, he was detained several 
months, afterwards emljarking for Harfleur, with six 
thousand men at arjns and twenty thousand foot. On 
reaching Harfleur he besieged it, and took it Septem- 
ber 18, 1415. Thence, with an army much weakened, 
he started for Calais, but was met by the entire 
French army on the plains of Agincourt. With 
his forces reduced to less than half the number of 
the French, and weakened by famine and sick- 
ness, he nevertheless gallantly attacked them, and 
achieved a victory most complete and thorough. 



HOUSE OF LANCASTER. 105 

The loss on the English side was very small, 
while the killed of the French fell little short of ten 
thousand men, who were the very flower of the French 
army. Henry followed up these successes, continuing 
the campaign at intervals, as his means would permit, 
until just as he had substantially completed the con- 
quest of France, a mightier conqueror called him away. 

Cardinal Beaufort, Bishop of Winchester (1405), 
Noted youngest son of John of Gaunt, and pro- 

Persons. ^^^^^^, ^^ Henry V. and YI., died 1447. 
Talbot, Earl of Shrewsbury, called " the English 
Achilles," 1373-1453. Tiiomas de Montacute, Earl of 
Salisbury, " the mirror of all martial men," died 1428. 
Walsingham, a monk of St. Albans, Avho continued the 
history of Matthew Prior, from Henry III. to Henry 
IV., died 1422. David Gam, Avho for his bravery at 
Agincourt was knighted, when dying of his wounds, 
1415. Henry Chicheley, Archbishop of Canterbury, 
founder of All Souls College, at Oxford, 1302-1443. 
Sir John Oldcastle, Lord Cobliam, 1360-1417. John 
Huss, reformer and martyr, 1370, executed 1415. 
Jerome of Prague, 1378, died May 30, 1410; celebrated 
reformer. 

Thomas Arundel, Archbishop of York and Canter- 
bury, Lord Chancellor in 1407, 1353-1413. Jolm, 
Duke of Bedford, Lord High Admiral, died 
1414. 

In this reign flourished Sir Bichard AYliittiugton, 
1300-1425, " thrice Lord Mayor of London," who 
acquired great riches by trading in a vessel called the 
Cat, whence arose the stories of his 'remarkal)le adven- 



106 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

tures. He was a great benefactor to Bartliolomew's 
and Christ's hospitals, and endowed some almshouses 
at Hisfhgfate. 



(.%) HENRY VI., 

SUKNAMED WINDSOR. 

1422 — 14G1. 

Henry VI., only son of Henry V., was born at 
Rirth and AVindsor, Deceml)er (], 1421. When but nine 
Pareutage. j^ontlis old he Succeeded to the throne, his 
uncle Humphrey, Duke of Bedford, being appointed 
Protector, defender and chief counselor of the king- 
dom and of the English Church. 

He was crowned " King of England and France," 
Accession to at Westminster, November (>, 1420, and 
the Throne, j-eigned from 1422 to 14(31. At his accession 
Parliament ordered a new title, in which he was recog- 
nized as " King of England and France, and Lord of 
Ireland.'" 

He married Margaret, daughter of Ilene, Duke of 
„ . Anion, April 22, 1443 ;'" an excellent 

Marriage. J ' i 

mother and most heroic Queen; who was 
crowned at Westminster, May 30, 1445. 

Edward, whom historians represent as an amiable 
])rince. He was taken prisoner at the battle 

Issue. '■ '■ 

of Tewkesbury, 1471, and having boldly 
asserted, in the presence of EdAvard IV., that the crown 
of England Avas lawfull}' his, he Avas stabbed by Rich- 
ard, Duke of Gloucester, EdAvard's brother. 

*Soine authorities make this date lUf), 



HOUSE OF LANCASTER. 107 

In the year 1471. His remains were buried at 
Death. Cliertssy, Surrey. 

Of medium height, but with a face in- 
Personai Ap- dicatiug the weakness of disease, of inofiPen- 

pearance and . iiii ^^ n -i c n 

Character, ^ive manners, and better qualined tor the 
cloister than the throne. He was a lover 
of books, and had the most extensive library of his 
day. 

The campaign against France was continued, with 
Notable Varying fortunes but ever decreasing success, 
Events. ^^ ^.j^^ French became more and more deter- 

mined to throw off the yoke of England, until in 1450 
the English were deprived of all their conquests ex- 
cept Calais, and expelled from France. In 1429 the 
north of France was reduced almost to a desert, and 
the husbandmen fled for refuge to the towns, until 
these, in fear of famine, shut their gates against them, 
and drove them to the woods in despair, to gain a 
livelihood by brigandage. In Paris alone one hun- 
dred thousand people perished from hunger and dis- 
ease. In this crisis arose the famous Joan of Arc. In 
1453 "the hundred years of war" for the subjugation 
of France ended. The misery occasioned by this 
long and ruinous struggle roused the English people 
to fury. Jack Cade, an Irishman, a soldier who had 
served in the French wars, having returned to Eng- 
land, raised in Kent an army twenty thousand strong. 
After a victory at Sevenoaks in 1450, he entered 
London with complaints, demanding administrative 
and political reforms, asking for more careful expend- 
iture of royal revenue, and for freedom of election. 



108 ENGLAND AND ITS RULEES. 

The complaints were received and considered, and some 
pardons were granted, and thus the insurrection was 
quelled. Cade had assumed the name of John Mort- 
imer, and claimed to be the legitimate heir to the 
throne. He was slain by the sheriff of Kent July 
11 of the same year. In 1450 began the contest 
of the Duke of York and the Earl of WarAvick for 
the crown, known as the " Wars of the Roses." 

On November 9, 1153, John Norman, then Lord 
Mayor of London, went " by water " to pay his homage 
to royalty. This is the first record of the rendering 
of such tribute. 

In this reign the privilege of voting for members 
of Parliament, for counties, Avas limited to freeholders 
having lands of the annual value of forty shillings 
rental. Eton College was founded in 1140, and the 
same year King's College at Cambridge. The first 
Lord Mayor's show Avas established in 1450. The 
winter of 1434 was so severe tliat the frozen Thames 
bore heavy wagons as far as Gravesend. The national 
debt had its beorinninof in this reiijn. 

With France, Avhere the English eventually lost all 
„, their possessions except Calais. 

\\ ars. '■ ^ . • . . 

Battle of A^erneuil, Avliich rivaled the 
glory of Cr^cy and Poitiers, August 27, 1424. 

Battle of the Herrings, February 12, 1429, so- 
called because stores being conveyed by the Eng- 
lish force engaged, consisted chiefly of herrings for 
the use of Henry's army. 

Richard, Duke of York, descended from Lionel, 
third son of Edward III., asserted his prior claim to 



HOUSE OF LANCASTER. 109 

the throne, and lience arose the civil wars between the 
houses of York and Lancaster, designated by " the red 
and the Avhite rose." The favorers of York wore the 
white rose as a badge, a red one being worn by the 
Lancastrian party. The principal battles were, first, 
battle of St. Albans (Herts), May 22, 1455. Though 
the King's army was led by Henry and his Queen, the 
Duke of York was successful, the Duke of Somerset 
being killed, and the King taken prisoner. Battle of 
Wakefield Green (Yorkshire), December 31, IIGO. In 
this engagement fell Eichard, Duke of York, father of 
Edward IV. and Richard III. The spot where he fell 
is still fenced off in the corner of a field near Sandal. 
Battle of Mortimer's Cross (Herefordshire), Febru- 
ary 2, 14<)1. This victory of the Yorkists led to the 
accession of the Earl of March (then become Duke of 
Y\irk) as King, under the title of Edward IV., on the 
following March 4, Avhich is reckoned as the last day 
of the reign of Henry VI., though he lived ten years 
afterwards. 

Humphrey StafPord, Duke of Buckingham, General 
Noted and Lord High Constable, died 1400. Joan 

Persons. ^£ ^^.^^ 1402-1431, a native of Domremi, in 
France. John Plantagenet, Duke of Bedford, Eegent 
of France, born 1389, died at Eouen, 1435. Hum- 
phrey Plantagenet, Duke of Gloucester, born 1391, 
was murdered at St. Edmundsbury, 1447. They 
were both sons of Henry IV., brothers to Henry V., and 
uncles to Henry VI. Duke of Suffolk, beheaded in an 
open boat off Dover, in his passage to France, 1451. 
Jack Cade, 1450. John Beaumont, the first English 



110 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

viscount, Bicliard Plantagenet, Duke of York, father 
of Edward IV. and Eicliard III., 141G-1460. Nicholas 
Dixon, Baron of the Exchequer in 1123, died *1118. 
AVilliam Allington, Speaker of the House of Com- 
mons, died 1429. William Babington, Chief Justice 
of Common Pleas, died 1425. Kichard Flemming, 
Bishop of Lincoln in 1420, founder of Lincoln College, 
Oxford, in 1427, *ia()0-1431. William of Wynfete, 
Prelate and Lord Chancellor from 1456 to 1460, died 
1486. 



1461 — 1485. 

HOUSE OF YORK. 

(37) EDWARD IV. 

1461 — 1482. 

Edward was born at Rouen, in 1441, and Avas the 

Birth and eldest son of Ricliard, Duke of York, and 

Parentage, tlie lineal descendant of Lionel, third son of 

Edward III. 

Accession to He was proclaimed King, March 2, 1461, 

the Throne, and crowned at Westminster, June 29, 1461. 

He espoused Lady Elizabeth Grey, May 1, 1464, 

daufjhter of Sir Ricliard Woodville, and 

Marriage. ^ ^ ^ 

widow of Sir John Grey, who was slain in 
the second battle of St. Albans, in 1461. Since the 
conquest, no king had before married a subject. She 
was crowned as Queen, at Westminster, May 23, 1465. 
Edward; Richard; Elizabeth, Avho mar- 
ried Henry VII. ; and other children. 
Edward died April 9, 1483, of a fever, at Westmin- 
ster, and was buried in the new chapel, at 

Death. ' _ '^ \ 

AVindsor, the foundation of which was laid 
by himself. 

He was called the handsomest man of his time. 
Personal Ap- ^c was endowcd with dauntless courage and 
poaranceand superb military skill; courteous and enafasf- 

Character. .^.,. "^ . ,,? 

mg m his manners, but voluptuous, bloody 
and cruel. The laurels he won in the field, were 

111 



112 ENGLAND AND ITS KULERS. 

stained by so many cold-blooded atrocities, as to rob 
him of any claim to true greatness. 

The Avar of the red and white Roses, was continued 
Notable with ever increasing hate and ferocity, during 
Events. ^j^-g gj^^jj.g reign. No quarter was given on 

either side, and the contest more resembled the cruel 
warfare of a barbarous age, than the controversy of a 
civilized nation. 

AVarwick, the Kingmaker, displeased at the King's 
private marriage, while he was negotiating for a mar- 
riage with Princess Bonne of Savoy, rebelled, and re- 
leasing Henry VI., after three years imprisonment, pi'o- 
claimed him King. Warwick v/as slain at Barnet, and 
Margaret and her sons, were taken prisoners at Tewkes- 
bury, and she was long detained in the Tower. The 
wealth of the crown, increased to an enormous amount 
by the confiscations resulting from the civil war, en- 
abled the King to dispense with the two houses of 
Parliament, and his rule soon ripened into despotism. 
He exacted "benevolences" or enforced contributions, 
from the merchants of London, and interfered with 
the administration of justice. Since the reign of 
John, the people had not been so oppressed, nor their 
rights so utterly disregarded. 

The Duke of Clarence, the King's brother, being 
found guilty of treason, in 1478, was imprisoned in 
the Tower, and it is said that he was drowned in a 
butt of Malmsey wine. A tradesman was executed, 
for saying his son was " heir to the crown," meaning 
the sign of his house; and Robert Byfield, Sheriff of 
London, was fined for kneeling too near the King. In 



HOUSE OF YORK, 113 

this reign lived tlie famous Jane Shore, perhaps 
" more sinned against than sinning," who yielded to the 
degrading propositions of the King, and became his 
mistress. After his death, she was treated by the 
populace with barbarous cruelty, being compelled 
among other things, to do penance in St. Paul's 
church-yard, dressed in a white sheet, and carrying a 
burning taper. She died in a ditch, in the district of 
London now called Shoreditch. 

Yew-trees Avere ordered to be cultivated in church- 
yards for making bows, and it was enacted that every 
Englishman, of whatever station, except the clergy 
and judges, should own a bow of his own height and 
keep it ready for use. It was also directed that every 
male child above seven years of age should be pro- 
vided with bows and properly instructed in their 
use. 

A plague, more destructive than the wars of the 
previous fifteen years, devastated England. 

William Caxton, a native of Kent, introduced from 
Bruges the art of printing, and erected within the 
precincts of Westminster Abbey, about 1474, the 
first printing press used in England. The first 
work printed in England, was called " The Game 
and Play of Chess," but the first book printed in 
the English language, was a translation by Caxton 
of " The Recuyell of the Historyes of Troy," pub- 
lished at Bruges in 1471. Printing began in Scot- 
land in 1508, and Ireland in 1551. Before that time, 
a New Testament alone, would have cost two years' 
wages, of the ordinary workingman. 



114 ENGLAND AND ITS EULERS, 

Caxton's translations of the iEneid, the writings 
of Boethius, of Cicero, and of other Latin authors 
tended to arouse interest among the small number 
who in that day gave attention to letters. 

Between the rival Roses. The first battle 
occurred at St. Albans, May 23, 1-155, Rich- 
ard, Duke of York, defeating Henry VI., 
who lost 5,000 men, while the Yorkists suffered but 
slightly. The second battle took place at Mortimer's 
Cross on Shrove Tuesday, February 2, 1101, the Earl 
of Warwick being in command of the Yorkists, and 
the Lancastrians being led by Queen Margaret of 
Anjou. Battle of Towton, Yorkshire, on Palm Sun- 
day, March 29, 14G1. It was a sanguinary engage- 
ment between the houses of York and Lancaster, in 
which 36,000 were slain, and the house of Lancaster 
defeated. After this battle the King remained some 
time concealed, but being discovered, was confined in 
the Tower of London. The Queen fled to Flanders, 
but returned with a considerable force, and gallantly 
fought the Battle of Hexham, May 15, 1164, but was 
again defeated, and she and her son were for some 
time homeless wanderers. 

Battle of Banbury, Oxfordshire, July 26, 1464. 

The Battle of Stamford was fought in Lincolnshire, 
March 14, 1470. 

The Battle of Barnet, in wliicli Richard Nevil, 
Earl of Warwick, was slain, took place in Herts and 
Middlesex, April 14, 1471. 

The Battle of Tewkesbury (Gloucestershire), May 
4, 1471. 



HOUSE OF YORK. ' 115 

George, Duke of Clarence, brother of Edward IV., 
Noted 1419 - 1478 ; Kicliard Nevil, Earl of AVar- 

Pcrsons. ^^^^^ ^^^^g^l tlie Kingmaker, *1420-1471; 

William Caxton, first English printer, *1410 - 1491 ; 
Francis Littleton, magistrate and jurist, died 1481; 
Thomas de Littleton, judge and author, died 1487 ; 
Sir John Fortescue, judge (1442), 1395-1485; William 
Allington, Speaker of the House of Commons, died 
1472; Lord Thomas Barowe, Keeper of the Great Seal, 
died *1485; Elizabeth Woodville, wife of Edward IV., 
died 1488 ; Robert Flemming, prelate, prothonotary 
apostolic, and Latin poet died 1483 ; John Harding, 
chronicler, 1378-1466; Thomas Kirkeby, treasurer of 
Exeter, Master of the Rolls in 1461, died 1476; Mar- 
garet of Anjou, wife of Henry VI., 1429-1482; Thomas 
Beckington, Bishop of Bath and Wells in 1443, 
*1385-1465; John Boucier, Earl of Essex, Lord 
Keeper of the Great Seal, died 1483. 



(.38) EDWARD V. 
148.3. 
Was the eldest son of Edward IV., whom he suc- 
Birth and ceeded at the age of twelve. He Avas born 
Parentage. ^^ Westminster, October 6, 1470, reigned 
only two months and twelve days of the year 1483, 
He was proclaimed King a few days after his father's 
death, but he was never crowned. His reign was the 
shortest, and his story the most pathetic in English 
annals. He and his younger brother Richard, Avere 
sent by their uncle Richard, Duke of Gloucester, to 



116 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

the Tower, under the pretence of waiting for the young 
King's coronation, but really to effect their deatli. 
They were smothered, and it is supposed buried 
at the foot of the staircase leading to their apart- 
ment, by Sir James Tyrrell and two associates. 
Tyrrell afterwards confessed his crime, and was exe- 
cuted in the reign of Henry YII. When making an 
alteration in one of the staircases of the ToAver in 
1674, the bones of two youths were discovered in a 
wooden chest, and these remains were placed in a mar- 
ble urn, by order of Charles II., as those of the young 
princes, and were buried at Westminster, Avhere a 
monument to their memory designed by Sir Chris- 
topher Wren, is still to be seen. 



(39) IIICH.\RD III., SURNAMED CROOKBACK. 
1483 — 1485. 
Richard was born at Fotheringay Castle, in North- 
Rirtii and amptousliire, October 2, 1452. He paved 
Parontago. J^s way to the tliroue by the murder of 
his ne[)hews, and was assisted in gaining it by the 
Duke of Buckingham. 

He was proclaimed King, in June, 1483, and 
Accession to crowucd July 6, 1483, at Westminster, 
the Throne, ^^gi^g j^\^q game arrangements which had 
been prepared for Edward V. 

He espoused Anne Nevil, the second daughter of 
the Earl of Warwick, and widow of Edward 

Marriage. 

Prince of Wales, in 1484. He is supposed 
to have caused her death which occurred suddenly at 



HOUSE OF YORK. 117 

Tewkesbury, March 6, 1485, in order that he might 
marry his niece Elizabeth, whose claim to the throne 
Avas regarded with popular favor. But the match 
was so unpopular, he dared not consummate it. 

Edward, created Prince of Wales, in 1481:, when 
about twelve years of acjfe, but lie only lived 

Issue. "^ Y . . 

three months after receiving the title. 
Richard Avas killed in the Battle of Bosworth, 
^ , Aujrust 22, 1485, while bravely though 

Deatli. p ' . ' . 

unjustly contending for the crown against 
Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond. Richard fought 
desperately, but without avail. His body, disfigured 
with wounds, and covered with blood and dirt, was 
found beneath the heaps of slain. It was thrown across 
a horse and carried to Leicester, where, after being ex- 
posed to public view for two days, it was buried with- 
out ceremony in the Church of the Grey Friars. His 
remains were exhumed by Henry VIII., and the 
stone coffin which had contained his body was used as 
a drinking trough for horses, at an inn in Leicester. 
His stature was short, and his features stern and 
„ , . forbidding; one arm was withered, and 

Personal Ap- ~ ' ' 

pearanceand one shoulder being higher than the other, 
gave him the name of " Crookback." He 
had great abilities, both for war and ])eace, but was 
ambitious, deceitful, remorseless, selfish, and utterly 
destitute of principle. 

The condition of the English people in this short 

Notable and Unhappy reign, is well shown by a peti- 

^^"*''' tion of the citizens of London to the King, 

on his accession, in which they say: "We be deter- 



118 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

mined, ratlier to commit us to the peril of our lives 
and jeopard}^ of death, than to live in such thraldom 
and bondage as Ave have lived long time heretofore, 
oppressed and injured by extortions, and new imposi- 
tions against the laws of God and man, and the lib- 
ei'ty and laws of this realm, wherein every Englishman 
is inherited." liichard met the appeal by convoking 
Parliament, but its numerous enactments were of no 
avail in checking the despotism of the King. The 
statutes of Richard were the first ex[)ressed in Eng- 
lish, those of former monarchs being either in Latin 
or French. They were also the first printed. 

The libi-ary of the University of Cambridge was 
founded in 1484. 

Post-horse stages, or regular resting places, Avere 
inaugurated. 

The office of British consul dates its origin from 
this reign. 

Battle of Bosworth in Leicestershire, between 

^ Richard and Henry, resulting in the former's 

defeat, August 22, 1485. 

The engagement of Bosworth field was the last 
battle of the war of the Roses, which for over thirty 
years had been prosecuted with fearful hate and blood- 
shed, and cost not less than 100,000 lives. In all, 
eighty princes of the blood royal, and more than half 
the nobles of the realm, perished. Every individual 
of the great houses of Somerset and Warwick fell, 
either on the field or the scafPold. 

In the course of the struggle, the feudal baronage 
was broken up. In a majority of cases the estates of 



HOUSE OF YORK. 119 

the nobles, for want of heirs, fell to the crown. At the 
end of this reign there were not enough of the nobles 
left to array themselves against the King in formid 
able numbers, and the land was ripe for the despotism 
which followed. 

Richard was the only monarch since the Conquest, 
who fell in battle, and the second who fought in his 
crown; which, falling off during the engagement, Avas 
afterwards found secreted in a hawthorn bush, and 
placed on Henry's head when Lord Stanley proclaimed 
liim King. Hence the device of " a croAvn and haw- 
thorn bush" on Henry VII.'s tomb in AVestminster 
Abbey. 

Edward, son of Richard III., and Anne of Warwick, 
jj^t^j 1474-1484; John Howard, Duke of Norfolk, 

Persons. diplomatist, died 1485; John O'Hedian, 
Bishop of Ossory in 1479, died 1480; Henry Stafford, 
favorite of Richard III., died 1483; Ralph Wolseley, 
Baron of the Exchequer in 1483, died 1485; Duke of 
Buckingham; Lord Stanley; Sir William Collingburn, 
executed, 1484 ; Sir Richard Ratcliff ; Sir William Cates- 
by, Speaker of the House of Commons in 1483, and 
Thomas Lovel, Speaker of the House of Commons 
in 1485 ("The Rat, the Cat, and Lovel the dog" ). 



HISTORICAL MEMORANDA CONNECTED WITH THE 
HOUSES OF LANCASTER AND YORK. 

Through the influence of the Catholic Church, all 
the bondsmen of the kingdom had been enfranchised. 
Macaulay says: "When the dying slave-holder asked 



i 

120 ENGLAND AND ITS KULERS. 

for the last sacraments, liis spiritual attendants regu- 
larly adjured him, as he loved his soul, to emancipate 
his brethren for whom Christ had died." The 
whole power of the Church was exerted for the further- 
ance of this great and beneficent object. 

The princi[)les enunciated by Magna Carta were 
a dead letter during this dynasty, and in the reigns 
of the last two monarchs, the rights of the people 
were recklessly and almost wholly disregarded. 

Some of the noblest colleges and public schools of 
England were founded in this period, although the 
civil Avars retarded education, which was confined 
almost entirely to martial science, or the art of war. 
King's College, Cambridge, and St. George's Chapel, 
Windsor, are admired specimens of the Gothic archi- 
tecture of this time. The destruction of buildings re- 
sulting from the wars of the Roses, gave impetus to 
building, and residences throughout England greatly 
imnroved in beauty and streni'th. The same cause, 
however, was ruinous to agriculture, as men had to leave 
the plow at the demand of their feudal superiors, and 
assume the sword and bow. This period was one em- 
phatically of devastating war and pillage; the struggle 
of Englishmen against Englishmen, -where every vic- 
tory was a defeat to the nation. We find, therefore, 
little of growth or progress in those arts which en- 
noble a nation. 

Gunpowder, although it had been used at Crecy, 
was not brought into effective employment, as a mili- 
tary resource, until the accession of the Tudors. It 
produced an immediate revolution in the art of war, 



HOUSE OF YORK. 121 

aud gave to the Kings, avIio controlled the artillery, 
almost irresistible power. The bow, armor and forti- 
fications were of no avail against it, and it was for a 
time the right arm of despotic government. 

During the reign of Henry YI., the right of suffrage 
was limited to those having an annual income of forty 
shillings (equal to as many pounds in modern money), 
from freehold land. No apparent change, however, 
seems, in consequence, to have taken place in the 
character of members of Parliament. Purveyance, 
which continued until 1G()0, was a great grievance. 
By it the King's purveyors had the right to seize provi- 
sions and means of transportation for the King, aud 
his numerous attendants, during the royal progresses. 
It was really spoliation of the subject, as the price was 
always inadequate, and often wholly unpaid. 

The monks bitterly opposed the introduction of the 
art of printing, as it tended to deprive them of a source 
of large revenue. Before its use, all books had to be 
Avritten on either paper or parchment, at a price 
equal to about fifty cents per page, in modern money. 
Nearly all the work was done in the monasteries, 
and furnished profitable employment to their inmates. 



1485 — 1603. 
HOUSE OF TUDOR. 

(iO) HENRY VII. 
1485—1509. 

Henry VII., suniamed Tudor, was born at Pem- 
Birthanci broke Castle, January 21, 1455. He was 
Parentaf,'o. the son of Eduiuud Tudor, Earl of Rich- 
mond, who married Margaret, the great-grand- 
daughter of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, the 
third son of Edward III., and grandson of Owen 
Tador, who married the D,)\vager Queen of Henry V. 

Henry Avas crowned at Westminster, October 30, 
Accession to 1-^85, Cardinal Bourchier, Archbishop of 
the Throne. Canterbury, performing the ceremony. He 
had the arguments sup[)orting his claim to the throne 
printed by Caxton, and scattered broadcast over the 
land. This was the first political appeal made through 
the press to the people. 

He was married, January 18, 1480, to Elizabeth, 
„ . daughter of Edward lY. By birth Eliza- 

Marnage. - 

beth was first, in the direct line of succes- 
sion to the throne, and Henry, by this marriage united 
the interests of the rival houses of York and Lancas- 
ter, which terminated the civil war. 

Issue, 

Arthur (Prince of Wales) ; Henry 
(afterwards Henry YIII. ); Margaret and Mary. 

122 



HOUSE OF TUDOE. 123 

Arthur married Catliariue of Aragon, Infanta of 
Spain, Nov. 14, 1501, but lie lived only a few months 
thereafter. Margaret became the wife of James IV., 
of Scotland. Mary was first married to Louis XII., 
of France; but after his death, she took for her second 
husband, the Duke of Suffolk (Clarence Brandon). 

Henry VII., died at Eichmond, April 21, 1509. 
He was buried in Westminster Abbey, in 

Death. ^ '' 

what is now called, "Henry VII.'s Chapel," 
which was partially erected by himself. 

Henry VII., in person, was tall, and, though slen- 
der, Avel] proportioned, and of a grave and 
poarance and commanding presence. He was easy in man- 
ner, but his distrustful nature made him 
difflcult of approach. When he chose, however, none 
could be more suave and gracious than he. Person- 
ally parsimonious, even to meanness, he was liberal in 
matters pertaining to the publico welfare. He encour- 
aged commercial enterprises, both at home and with 
foreign countries, favoring the middle and trading 
classes, while preying on the great lords. He to 
some extent so improved the laws of the realm, that 
they became less galling to his subjects. Lord Bacon 
said: "His laws were deep, not vulgar; not made on 
the spur of any particular occasion for the present, 
but acts of prudence for the future, to render the 
estate of the people more happy; after the manner of 
legislators of ancient, heroic times." Henry was a 
law unto himself, notwithstanding Lord Bacon's flat- 
tery, there being no limit to his extortions, except 
his own will. His selfishness made him a shrewd 



12-4 ENGLAND AND ITS EULERS. 

politician, far-sighted, and in advance of liis times, 
well skilled in state-craft, devoting much attention to 
public affairs. Foreseeing a possibility of a future 
union of England and Scotland, lie arranged the mar- 
riage of his eldest daughter, Margaret, with James 
IV., of Scotland. He bequeathed to his successor a 
hoard of two million pounds, which was for that day 
an enormous sum. His greed for the accumulation of 
wealth, became later in life almost a mania, and the 
hoard of money which he gathered through his finan- 
cial ministers, Empson and Dudley, was often hidden 
in secret places at Richmond. It was this trait in his 
character which made his favorite method of punish- 
ing offenders, the imposition of heavy fines. 

These extortions weighed heavily upon his mind as 
he lay wasting away with consumption, at Richmond; 
and he begged his son Henry, to make all possible 
restitution to the subjects he had so wronged; and 
himself paid all debts of persons then imprisoned, for 
" amounts under forty shillings." 

He was a sordid, selfish, merciless man; one who 
allowed no tenderness to touch his rigid nature, if Ave 
except the affection he displayed for his mother. His 
treatment of the Earl of Warwick, illustrates this. 
King Richard had created Edward Plantagenet, son of 
the Duke of Clarence, the last survivor of that line. 
Earl of Warwick. Henry's fear of the pretensions of 
the Earl to the throne, was the only possible reason 
that could be assiijned for confinintj him fourteen 
years in the Tower, and bringing him to an ignomin- 
ious death. The nobles were too Aveak to be a check 



HOUSE or TUDOR. 125 

upon him; the clergy feared the Lollards, and the 
King, by prudently avoiding foreign wars, Avas not 
obliged to summon a Parliament or ask for money. 
He thus became independent of the people, Avith 
almost despotic power. 

Taken in its entirety, the career of Henry VII., 
must be regarded, owing to the absence of foreign 
wars, as a prosperous one for the country. 

The coronation of Henry VII., was signalized by 
Notable the raising of twelve knights and baronets 
Events. ^^ ^j-^g peerage. At the same time he insti- 

tuted the " Yeoman of the Guard," a body of fifty 
archers, men selected to secure his own safety. The 
organization was, later, made perpetual. These be- 
came a part of the royal household, and from their 
duties were called " buffetiers." This term has been 
corrupted into "beef-eaters." 

In 1492, the Bahama Islands and West Indies were 
discovered by Christopher Columbus. In 1498, he dis- 
covered the Continent of South America. In the 
preceding year Newfoundland had been discovered by 
John Cabot and his son Sebastian. The latter was 
born in Bristol, and published the first map of the 
world which contained both hemispheres. 

Vasco de Gama discovered the passage by sea to 
India, doubling the Cape of Good Hope, in 1497. 

Ocean charts were invented by the brother of Co- 
lumbus, and the first double-decked Avar ship, " The 
Great Henry," 1,000 tons burthen, Avas built. 

Shillings Avere first coined. 

The court of the Star-chamber is said to have been 



126 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

originated during the reign of Henry VII., the name 
being derived from the room in tlie palace at West- 
minster where it met; its nominal object being little 
more than a desire to enforce order, by making the 
nobles amenable to the King's personal judgment. 
Mr. Hume, however, refers to the " lords sitting in star- 
chamber," and states that " in the reign of Edward III., 
the jurisdiction of this court had become so op[)res- 
sive, that various statutes were made to abridge and 
restrain it." Macaulay is authority for saying, that 
under Henry VII., though the Star-chamber was 
remodelled, and the Court of the High Commission 
created, "the former was a political and the latter a 
religious inquisition," whose exceptional powers (con- 
firmed by Parliamentary statutes), robbed the citizen 
of his right to be tried by his peers, and that they 
" daily committed excesses which the most distin- 
guished Royalists have condemned," and which made 
the Great Charter a dead letter north of the Trent. 

The highly ornamental, or florid style of architec- 
ture, known " as the Tudor style," of Avhich the 
" King's College Chapel " at Oxford, and the Henry 
VII. Chapel, at Westminster, are the best examples 
extant, was introduced. 

Peter, or Perkin Warbeck, the impostor, Avhom the 
Duchess of Burgundy, sister of Edward IV., endeav- 
ored to foist upon the English people, as Duke of 
York, and Lambert Simnel, who personated the Earl of 
Warwick, excited formidable revolts; but the latter 
Avas reduced to the position of a scullion in the royal 
kitchen, Avhile the former, after many strange adven- 



HOUSE OF TUDOR. 127 

tares in Scotland and France, was hanged November 
28, 1499, at Tyburn. It is said that Warbeck, when 
captured and confined in the Tower, saw the real 
Duke, wl)om he had counterfeited, for the first time, 

Lincoln's Inn was, originally, the palace of Henry 
de Lacy, Earl of Lincoln; and was first converted into 
a residence for law students in 1310. The old Hall 
was built in 1500, when all the buildings were remod- 
elled into their present form. In 1013, the Chapel 
was built by Inigo Jones, architect. The new Hall 
was built in 1843. 

There were no wars of any importance with foreign 
nations durinor the reitjn of Henry VII. 

Wars. » » J 

The war with France, 1492, over the fief of 
Bretagne, was settled by the payment by Louis XII., 
of two hundred thousand pounds indemnity for expendi- 
tures, and a pension of twenty-five thousand crowns 
to Henry and his heirs. 

The early part of this reign, however, was much 
disturbed by domestic insurrections, in the main fos- 
tered by the Duchess of Burgundy; the Battle of 
Stoke, in Nottinghamshire, June 10, 1487, being the 
most noted of these conflicts. 

Sebastian Cabot "^llTT-^lyoT; Christopher Colum- 
^^^^^ bus 1447-1500; William Caxton 1410-1491, 

Persons. the first printer in England; Sir Richard 
Empson and Edmund Dudley, political agents of the late 
King, executed in 1510 by Henry VIII., for extortion; 
Margaret of Beaufort, 1441-1509; Thomas Frowyk, 
Chief Justice of Common Pleas (1502), "1400-1500; 
Edward Plantagenet, Earl of Warwick, and nephew of 



128 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Edward IV., 1475-1499; James Stanley, Bishop of 
Ely in 1506, died 1515; David Williams, Master of 
the Kollsin 1487, died 1492; Thomas AVood, Chief 
Justice of Common Pleas in 1500, died 1502; Francis 
Lovel, rebel, 1486, died 1487. 



(41) HENRY VIII. 
1509 — 1547. 

Birth aiui ^^ ^"^^^ ^^^^"^ ^^ Greenwich, in 1491, 

Parentage, and was the second son of the preceding 
monarch. 

Accession to ^^ ^^^^ crowned at Westminster, June 
the Throne. 24, 1509, together with his consort Cathar- 
ine, of Aragon. 

In domestic affairs, Henry's conduct is without 
a parallel in history, he had in succession 

Marriage. _ _ _ •' 

six wives, viz. : 
I. Catharine of Aragon, whom he, when only 
twelve years of age, married June 6, 1509, solely for 
political and mercenary reasons, she being the widow 
of his elder brother Arthur. After this marriage 
had lasted eighteen years, the King, on May 23, 1533, 
induced Cranmer (who for that purpose was made 
archbishop), to secure in his court a decision that the 
marriage with Catharine was illegal, her daughter 
Mary illegitimate, and that Anne Boleyn, to whom 
he had previously been privately married, on No- 
vember 14, 1532, before he had been divorced from 
Catharine, was the lawful queen. Anne Boleyn was 
crowned at Westminster, June 1, 1533. Catharine never 



HOUSE OF TUDOE. 129 

recognized the sentence as legal; she lived a mel- 
ancholy and secluded life at Ampthill, near Woburn, 
till January 6, 1536, when she died. She was six years 
older than the King, and when he was crowned went 
through the form of a second marriage. 

2. Anne Boleyn, to whom he was married Novem- 
ber 12, 1532, was crowned Queen three days after 
the issue of Cranmer's decree. She gave birth to a 
daughter, Elizabeth, before the close of the year 1533. 
Subsequently, the King seems to have formed a dislike 
for Anno, and she was committed to the Tower on 
false charges. May 2, 1530, unjustly tried, sentenced 
to death, and her daughter declared illegitimate. 
Anne was beheaded May 19, of same year, and on the 
following day. 

3. May 20, 1530, the King married Jane Sey- 
mour. In 1537 she gave birth to a son, Edward, and 
a few days afterwards died. 

4. The King had been shown a portrait by Hol- 
bein, of the Princess Anne of Cleves, in Germany, 
whom he married by proxy, January 6, 1540, but 
when he met her at Dover, and found she was not 
as beautiful as the picture represented, he induced 
Parliament, July 10, of same year, to declare the 
marriage void. Thomas Cromwell, avIio had suggested 
the marriage, was subsequently beheaded on other 
charges. 

5. On May 8, 1540, he married Catharine 
Howard, (niece of the Duke of Norfolk,) whom on 
the charge of indiscretion, the King beheaded, Feb- 
ruary 12, 1542, and attainted her relatives. 



130 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

6. Though Henry had killed two wives, and di- 
vorced two others, he succeeded in obtaining a sixth, 
Catharine Parr, widow of Lord Latimer, whom he 
married July 12, 1553, who, by her extraordinary tact 
and wisdom, retained the King's favor till his death. 
Mary by his first queen; Elizabeth by 
Anne Boleyn; and Edward, by Lady Jane 
Seymour. 

The death of the King was greatly hastened by a 
disorder in his le^j, which had afflicted him 

Death. ^ \ 

many years. He died January 28, 1547, at 
Westminster, and was buried at Windsor. Worn out 
with debauchery, he had become a loathsome and 
helpless mass of corruption. 

No monarch who ever ascendc^l the English throne 
, . presents to us a trreater diversity, both as 

Personal Ap- i » J ■> 

poaranco aud to personal appearance and character, than 

Character. ^t i^ttt i • 1.1 

Henry Vlli., as we see iiim the young, 
handsome, entertaining and agreeable man of 1500, 
and the old, battered, worn out monarch of 1547. 
Henry VIII., was the last monarch avIio was addressed 
as " Dread Sovereign." 

In youth he was of commanding figure, athletic, 
and a master of all manner of maul}- sports, as well as 
accomplished in drawing-room and boudoir manners. 
But as he advanced in years, with the accretion of 
fiesli he l)ecanie awkward, and careless in regard to 
liis personal ap[)earance and demeanor; and as the 
cares of state began to weigh upon him, and he found 
himself at times thwarted in his personal wishes, he 
became capricious, dictatorial and vindictive. He was 



HOUSE OF TUDOR. 131 

of a vigorous mind, learned, and capable of temporary 
friendships, but vain, despotic and cruel. 

The first few years of his reign were devoted to 
such uninterrupted festivities, that he soon dissipated 
the greater portion of the immense wealth which he 
had inherited from his father. Then began a career 
of wanton self -indulgence, extortion and tyranny. 
His entire aim seems always to have been his own 
personal aggrandizement, and the gratification of 
selfish and sensual desires. He for that purpose made 
himself the head of the Church of Entjfland, controU- 
ing the funds, as well as dictating the doctrines of 
that great body. Benevolences were again extorted 
from the rich merchants of England, and justice in 
the ordinary courts was prostituted to the royal will. 
The whole machinery of government was perverted, 
and its officers were simply the tools of royal des- 
potism. The rights of the common people he dared 
not violate, but the wealthy and the noble, as well as 
the Church, Avere despoiled without hesitation. 

In fact, his character may be summed up as a 
bundle of contradictions; an eminent writer saying, 
" he was a clever, dishonest, good-natured, obstinate, 
selfish, ambitious, tempestuous, arrogant scoundrel. 
. . . Yet, withal, in liis young days, a great 
favorite, ... so tall, so trim, so stout, so good, 
so free with his money." 

Wolsey, the son of a butcher at Ti)swich, by his 
Notable great executive ability, attained unexampled 
Events. powcr and wealth. For twenty years he 

had been a favorite Avith Henry, Avho had loaded him 



132 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS, 

with benefits. He became successively Archbishop of 
York, chief minister of England, the Pope's legate, 
and a cardinal. His official emoluments were enor- 
mous, and his pomp almost royal. With a small por- 
tion of his wealth he founded Cardinal Colleofe at 
Oxford, which upon his fall, was given its later title of 
Christ Church. His wealth and power, however, com- 
bined as it was with lavish display and ostentation, 
became so great that it excited the jealousy of the 
King. It Avas discovered, too, that he was plotting 
for the papacy, and for that purpose opposed the 
King's marriage with Anne Boleyn. The King and 
Anne, therefore, agreed upon his destruction. Legal 
proceedings were instigated against him, and he was 
accused of holding the office of papal legate con- 
trary to law. Wolsey bowed to the storm, and hoping 
to gain time for his vindication, gave up to the King 
all his immense possessions. He retireil to a castle 
in the North, but a year afterward was arrested on the 
charge of high treason. On his Avay to London to 
answer the accusation, he turned aside, to die broken- 
hearted, at Leicester Abbey, uttering the often quoted 
words "if I liad served my God with half the zeal I 
served my King, He would not in mine old age have 
left me naked to my enemies.'" 

In 1533, soon after the King's marriage with Anne 
Boleyn, the Pope ordered him to [)ut her away under 
penalty of excommunication. Parliament, within a 
twelvemonth, answered the demand by passing the 
Act of Supremacy, which declared Henry to be with- 
out reservation, the sole head of the Church of Eng- 



HOUSE OF TUDOR. 183 

land, and pronounced the penalties of high treason 
against all who should deny it. Thus England threw 
off the papal authority, dominant there for upwards of 
ten centuries. The King and Parliament were in 
substance the same, and soon after a law was pro 
mulgated making Henry, practically, the Pope of 
England, and giving him power by his own individual 
proclamation, to declare any opinions he disliked 
heretical and punishable with death. No more perfect 
despotism than this can be conceived, and Sir Thomas 
More and Bishop Fisher Avere executed because they 
could not conscientiously affirm that Henry was enti- 
tled to be called the head of the English Church. 
The Pope attempted to punish tliis judicial murder, 
by a bull of excommunication and deposition. Henry 
avenged himself by suppressing the monasteries in 
pursuance of a bill which he caused his servile House 
of Commons to pass. The spoliation of religious 
houses was complete; the stained-glass windows were 
broken; the chimes of bells were cast into cannon; 
and the libraries, some of them of very great value, 
sold for wrapping paper. To make his vengeance 
upon the Pope more signal, Becket's tomb at Canter- 
bury was broken open, and the saint summoned to 
answer a charge of treason. The case was actually 
tried (a farce half solemn, half ludicrous) at West- 
minster Abbey, and the martyr's bones, which had as 
much chance to be heard as others who had incurred 
the King's enmity, were sentenced to be burned, and 
his shrine was despoiled of its jewels and rich offerings. 
The destruction of the monasteries, by enriching the 



134 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

King, made him more absolute than before. It caused 
great misery to thousands in the hind who had hereto- 
fore been maintained by the religious houses. Ulti- 
mately, however, by compelling them to labor, it 
proved to be a benefit. The extent of the spoliation may 
be seen in the fact that 045 monasteries, 2,374 chapels, 
90 collegiate churches, and 110 charitable institutions 
Avere destroyed. 

By the Six Articles, an act called by Protestants the 
" Bloody Bill," the King established a religion which 
Avas substantially pa[)ac3\ with himself for Pope. He 
prohibited Lutheran doctrines, but caused the Bible 
to be translated, and a copy chained to a desk in every 
parish church in England. The clergy alone, how- 
ever, were permitted to interpret it. It was hard to 
know what to believe, and " the Catholic who denied 
the King's supremacy, and the Protestant who refused 
to believe that the blessing of a priest could miracu- 
lously change bread into the body of the Savior," were 
borne to death on the same hurdle. 

Henry issued an edict in 1542, in regard to read- 
ing the Bible, which is in part as follows: "A noble- 
man or gentleman may read it in his house, or in his 
garden or orchard, yet quietly, and without disturb- 
ance of order. A merchant may read it to himself 
privately; but the common people, women, artificers, 
a[)[)rentices, journeymen and servingmen are to be 
punished with one month's imprisonment, as often as 
they, are detected in reading the Bible, either privatelj'- 
or openly." 

Nearly all Avho had served Henry, in oflices of state, 



HOUSE OF TUDOR. 135 

either to advance his authority or to aid his pleasures, 
were destroyed by him. Besides Cardinal AVolsey 
and others before named, he put' to death Thomas 
CromAvell, who had materially helped him in estab- 
lishing his authority, and who was, under various 
pretexts, beheaded July 28, 1540. The Earl of 
Surrey, an accomplished knight, and eminent as a 
poet, was beheaded January 10, 15-17. Among others 
we may name also the Duke of Buckingham, Higli 
Constable of England, who was beheaded for treason, 
May 17, 1521. The last person on whom the King 
decided to display his cruelty, was the aged Duke of 
Norfolk, father of the Earl of Surrey. He was con- 
demned to be beheaded on January 27, 1547, and liis 
life was only saved by the death of the tyrant the day 
before. 

Sir James Howard was the first Lord High Ad- 
miral a[)pointcd in the English navy. Mexico 
was conquered by Cortez, anil Ptiiii by Pizarro. St. 
Paul's School Avas founded in 1510. The College of 
Physicians was instituted by Dr. Linacre, in 1518. 
The entire Bible was first translated into English in 
153U. Many kinds of fruit and vegetables, including 
cherries, apricots, apples and hops, were first culti- 
vated in England during this reign. Classical litera- 
ture began to be extensively studied, and the Greek 
language was for the first time taught at the uni- 
versities and endowed schools. Erasmus, though a 
native of Holland, was Greek teacher at Oxford, and 
did much to extend the progress of learning in Eng- 
land. The great work of his life was the translation 



136 ENGLAND AND ITS IIULERS. 

of the Greek Testament into Latin. Wolsey com- 
menced building Hampton Court Palace, and Christ 
Church, Oxford. 

Thomas Wyatt is awarded, by common consent, 
the credit of having engrafted the sonnet upon Eng- 
lish poetry during this reign. Howard, Earl of Sur- 
rey, translated the first two books of Vergil, and used 
"blank verse" for the first time in English literature. 
The diving bell was introduced in 1509. 

The Strand, so named from its skirting the banks 
of the Thames, and one of the chief arteries of com- 
merce in London, Avas first paved in 1532. 

St. James Park, originally a marsh, Avith an irregu- 
lar brick building which Avas occupied as an lios[)ital 
for lepers, Avas converted into a beautiful [)ark, its 
revenues having been first sequestered for that pur- 
pose by Henry VIII., Avho caused the marsh to be 
drained. At the same time he pensioned part of the 
inmates, scattered the rest, destroyed the hospital, 
and erected the Palace of St. James. AVhitehall 
Palace Avas also l)nilt. 

Trinity House corporation Avas founded in 1512, by 
Sir Thomas Spert, the commander of the ship ''Harry 
Grace de Dieu." He Avas comptroller of the navy to 
Henry VIII. Trinity House building, hoAvever, 
Avas not begun until 1713 (Samuel AVyatt, architect), 
and Avas opened for business in 1705. 

Leaden conduits, for the conveyance of Avater, were 
substituted for AA'ooden ones previously used for that 
purpose. Cotton thread was invented. Henry's fifth 
Avife introduced pins from France, but they Avere con- 



HOUSE OF TUDOR 137 

sidered an expensive luxury and were used only by 
ladies who, on their marriage, had a special allowance 
called " pin money." A pound sterling was first 
called a sovereign. The office of Secretary of State 
was instituted in 1529. Lord Cromwell, afterwards 
Earl of Essex, was the first to hold the office. The 
" Society of Jesus " was created in 1535, by Ignatius 
Loyola, a Spaniard, whose notable life Macaulay so 
graphically describes. Wales was first represented 
in Parliament. 

Arts and manufactures received some encourage- 
ment from Henry, and artisans from various parts of 
continental Europe began to enter England, settling 
at Sheffield and other manufacturing centers. 

Beof and mutton were sold for one half penny 
a pound. Three[)ence and fourpence per day were the 
ordinary wages for workmen. 

Henry invaded France; battle of Guinegate, Au- 
gust 1(), 1513. This action is called the 

Wars. ^ ' 

Battle of the Spurs, because the French 
made more use of their s])urs in running away, than 
they did of their weapons. Peace declared 1514. 
In 1522, Avar with France. Peace declared 

1527. 

His brother-in-law, James IV., of Scotland, hav- 
ing embraced the cause of France, invaded the north- 
ern parts of England, but was defeated by the Earl 
of Surrey, and slain at Flodden, in Northumberland, 
September 9, 1513. The Scots under James V., were 
defeated at Solway, in Cund)orland, November 25, 
1542. In December, of the same year, James V. died 



138 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

of a broken heart, leaving one child, Mary, then only a 
few (lays old. 

Cardinal Thomas AVolsey, Bishop of Lincoln in 
Noted 1514, Archbishop of York, 1514, 1471- 

Persons. 1530; Tliomas Cromwell, Earl of Essex, 
the son of a blacksmith. Master of the Eolls in 1534, 
diplomatist, *1490-executed 1540; Howard, Earl of 
Surrey, poet and general, 1516-1547. In considera- 
tion of his services at Flodden, he was restored to 
the Dukedom of Norfolk, forfeited by his father, who 
was slain at Bosworth fighting for Richard. William 
Tyndale, reformer and martyr, ■^'1477, executed 1530; 
Miles Coverdale, Bishop of Exeter in 1551, *1487, 
executed *15G4, Both of these were translators of the 
Bible; Sir Thomas AVyatt, poet, 1503-1541 or 2; 
John Leland, antiquary, and author of ''The Itin- 
erary," *1506-1552; Martin Luther, 1483-1546; 
Ltt4ius Socinius, the Italian Unitarian, 1525-1562, 
Dcsiderius Erasmus, 1467-153(5, eminent scholars; 
Gustavus I., Yasa, 1496-1560; King of Sweden, 
1523 to 1560, Nicolaus Copernicus, Polish astrono- 
mer 1473-1543; Leonardo da Yinci 1452-1519 
Italian painter; Sanzio di Urbino Eaffaelle, or Ra- 
phael, 1483-1520, Italian painter; Albert Durer, 
printer, engraver and architect, 1471-1528. The fol- 
lowing were chief administrators and advisers to 
Henry YIII. : In 1509, C;ii(linal and Bishop John 
Fisher (1459-1535) and the Earl of Surrey. In 
1513, Cardinal Thomas Wolsey. In 1523, Cardinal 
Wolsoy was succeeded by Sir Thomas More 1480, 
executed 1535. In 1532-3, Thomas Audley, Lord 



HOUSE OF TUDOR. 139 

Audley of AValdeii (1488-1544). In 1533, Thomas 
Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury 1489, burnt 
1556. In 1534, Lord Thomas Cromwell. In 1540, 
Thomas Howard, Duke of Norfolk 1473-1554. In 
1531, Howard, Earl of Surrey, and Stephen Gardiner, 
Bishop of Winchester (1483-1555). In 1544-7, 
Thomas AVriothesley, Earl of Southampton, died 
1550, and Edward Seymour, Earl of Hertford, after- 
ward Duke of Somerset and Kegent of Edward VI, 
executed 1562. 



(42) EDWARD VI., 
1547 — 155:5. 
Edward was born at Hampton Court, Middlesex, 
Birth and October 1'2, 1537, and was the only son of 
Parentage. Henry VIII., by Jane Seymour. 
Accession to "^^ ^^^^ crowucd at Westminster, Feb- 

theTiirone. ruary, 10, 1547. He was never married. 
He died of consumption, July 6, 1553, and was 
buried at Westminster. Some authorities 

Death. 

affirm that he met his death by poison, 
administered by the Duke of Northundjerland, his 
guardian, and Protector of the realm. 

His person was comely, and his features engaging, 
, . but ijivinff evidence of constitutional disease. 

Personal Ap- ^5 o 

pearanceand He was of mild temper, studious disposi- 
tion, gentle in his manners, and like a deli- 
cate hot-house plant in a forest of ancient oaks. His 
diary, still preserved in the British Museum, shows 
considerable leai'ning, acute observation, and a ripe- 



140 ENGLAND AND ITS KULERS. 

ness of judgment beyond his years, and has consider- 
able historical value. 

During the first six years of his reign, the govern- 
Notabie uicnt was administered as directed in his 

Events. father's will, by his uncle the Duke of 

Somerset. A conspiracy formed against Somerset by 
the Earl of Warwick, was successful, and he was 
executed on Tower Hill, January 22, 1552. The Earl 
of Warwick, who had become Duke of Northumber- 
land, succeeded him as protector. 

Great distress was occasioned in this reign, by the 
nobles, who seized the unenclosed lands of the coun- 
try, and fenced them in for themselves, making beg- 
gars of many who had derived part of their living 
from pasturing their domestic animals on these com- 
mons, which had heretofore been entirely free. This, 
and the greed of tlie mercantile classes for lands, 
raised rentals largely, and deprived thousands of the 
means of sustenance, producing Avide-spread misery. 

Edward made the National Church Protestant in 
doctrine. By his direction. Archbishop Cranmer 
compiled a Book of Common Prayer, chiefly a trans- 
lation from tlie Pioman Catholic lueviniT- He also 
prepared the thirty-nine articles and the catechism, 
now in use by that body. The liturgy thus framed 
was in 1591 made obligatory, by act of Parliament, on 
all the churches in England. It is, substantially, the 
same as that now in use in the Englisli Church, and is 
known as " King Edward's Prayer Book." The work 
of confiscating the property of the Roman Catholic 
Church was continued. The money thus realized was 



HOUSE OF TUDOR. 1J:1 

devoted to the founding of schools, hospitals and 
other benevolent institutions. Among these were the 
hospitals of St. Thomas and St. Bartholomew in Lon- 
don, and the famous Christ Church hospital, the first 
Protestant charity school established in England, now 
popularly known as the Bluecoat school. Emerson 
said of his visit there, that it was as if the spectator 
by passing through a gateway had gone back more 
than three centuries. Coleridge, Lamb and many 
others noted in literature, were educated there, and 
have bequeathed us pleasant reminiscences of it. 
Chief and foremost among these, for delightful por- 
traiture, is Charles Lamb's essay entitled, " Christ's 
Hospital." 

The Scriptures were printed find largely circulated 
among the people. It was indeed a golden epoch for 
the Bible printers. During the six years of Edwaid's 
rule, fifty editions, principally of Coverdale's and Tyn- 
dale's versions, were issued, and no less than fifty- 
seven publishers were constantly engaged in their issue. 

Grapes were brought from France, and for the first 
time generally cultivated in England. Crowns, half- 
crowns and sixpences were introduced into the cur- 
rency of England; and trade commenced with Eussia. 
A naval expedition of three ships, under Sir Hugh 
AYilloughby, was sent out to discover a northeast 
passage to India, but the creAvs were frozen to death 
off Lapland. 

As directed by Henry's will, the Pro- 

Wars. . , 

tector endeavored to unite the crowns of 
England and Scotland by the marriage of Edward and 



142 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Mary, Queen of Scots. The Scots, however, would 
not assent to the union, and the Protector advanced 
against theni and won the battle of Pinkie, near Mus- 
selburgh, September 10, lo-lT. Mary, for greater 
security, was sent to France, and was soon after be- 
trothed to the Dauphin. 

AYith France, in 1549. Peace made in 1550. 

Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk, grandfather of 
•^,,^^^1 Lady Jane Grey, and favorite of Henry 

Persons. VIII., died 1545; Sir Hugh WiUougliby, 
celebrated explorer, died 1554" ; Nicolas Ptidley, Bishop 
of Piochester in 1547, of London 1550, executed 1555. 
He assisted Cranmer in preparing the church liturgy 
and catechism, published in English hy order of 
Parliament; Thomas Seymour (Lord Sudeley), Lord 
High Admiral, and liusband of Catharine Parr, widow 
of Henry VIII., executed 1549; William Kett, a 
tanner of Norfolk, wlio raised an insurrection and was 
hanged at Norwich in 1549; Lord Guilford Dud- 
ley, husband of Lady Jane Grey, executed 1554; 
Edward Seymour, Earl of Hertford and Duke of 
Somerset, Ilegent to Edward VI., executed 1552. 
He was succeeded by John, Earl of AVarwick and 
Duke of Northumberland, as Regent and Lord 
Chancellor; Andrew Borde, poet and physician to 
Henry VIII., 1500"-1549; Catharine Bore, consort of 
Luther, 1499-1552; John Pilborough, Baron of the 
Exchequer in 1547, died 1548; Sir Eobert SouthAvell, 
Master of the Polls in 1547, died 1559; Sir John 
Baker, Speaker of the House of Commons in 1547, 
died 1558; Catharine Parr, sixth wife of Henry VIII., 
1509-1548. 



HOUSE OF TUDOR. 143 

(43) MARY I. 
1553 — 1558. 

Mary, sometimes called " Bloody Mary," was born 
Birtii and ^^ Greenwich, February 11, 1516, and was 
Parentage, the daughter of Henry VIII., and Catha- 
rine of Aragon. 

Accession to ^he was crowued at Westminster, Sep- 
tbe Throne, tember 30, 1553. 

She married Philip II., of Spain, son of Charles, 
Emperor of Germany, at Westminster, 

Marriage. ^ ., . 

July 25, 1554, but had no issue. 

She died at London, of di'opsy, Novem- 

Deatb. ' ^ •" 

ber 17, 1558. 
Tall, with a face and figure indicating resolution; 
, . a chronic invalid; childless and unloved. 

Personal Ap- ' 

pearanceand She possessed great courage and firm- 

Character. , i pi i ,• • 

ness, and seemed alter her coronatnni to 
become infused with an unusual spirit of bigotry and 
cruelty, ruling with the single idea of bringing Eng- 
land into subjugation to the papal hierarchy. The 
penalty of reading the English Scriptures, or of offering 
Protestant prayers was death. Her reign has been 
characterized as " the years of the martyrs;" though 
her constant persecutions, gi-owing in cruelty and 
intensity, only tended to strengtlien the cause of 
Protestantism. In October, 1555, Latimer and Bishop 
Ridley were drawn from tlieir prison in Oxford, and 
In-ought to the stake. "Play the man, Master 
llidley," said the old preacher of the Beformation, as 
the flames shot up around him ; " We shall this day light 



144 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

siicli a candle in Eu^laiid. as by God's grace, I trust 
shall never be pnt out." Crunnior soon followed them 
to execution, and his martyrdom was the death-ldow 
to Catholicism in England. In a single day, thirteen 
victims, two of them Avomen, were burnt at Stratford 
le Bow. Seventy-three Protestants of Col'ch ester were 
drajjtjed throuorh the streets of London, tied to a 
single rope. Even the universities Avere visited, and 
the corpses of foreign teachers wdio had found a rest- 
ing place there under Edward, Avere torn from their 
graves and reduced to ashes. But such a reign of 
cruelty soon proved too revolting to the English mind, 
and Mary, Avho to support Philip had drawn the 
nation into a Avar (Avhich ended in disgraceful disas- 
ter), Avas saved only l)y death, from confronting a 
general uprising of the people. Her reign Avas a con- 
tinued Avar against her Protestant subjects, Avhicli 
filled Enjifland Avith terror and dismay. Religious 
toleration Avas unknoAvn in her (hiy. The alternative 
otfered to the heretic was, " turn or burn." 

Lady Jane Grey, Avho, in opposition to her OAvn 
Notable Avishes, had been proclaimed Queen, Avas 

Events. seized on Mary's accession, and although 

she at once resigned all claim to the throne, Avas 
told to prepare for death, and Avas beheaded, together 
Avith her husband, February 12, 1554. The death 
of the Duke of Suffolk, her father, and other persons 
Avho had espoused her cause, followed soon after. Sir 
Thomas Wyatt excited a rebellion in her faA'or, but 
he Avas taken prisoncn- by Sir Maurice Berkeley and 
executed. 



HOUSE OF TUDOK. 145 

Coaches are supposed to have been first used in 
England in this reign, although according to Stowe, 
the Antiquary, they were introduced in 1580, by Fitz- 
Allen, Earl of Arundel. Before their introduction, 
ladies rode in litters, sedan-chairs, or on horseback 
behind their squires. Hackney coaches, so called 
from the village of Hackney, near London, were not 
introduced till 1625. The manufacture of drinking- 
glasses was first begun in England. Flax and hemp 
were grown, and the use of starch discovered. 

With France, 1557; the loss of Calais occurred Jan- 

uary 7, 1558, after being for more than two 

centuries in the possession of the English, 

It was taken by the Duke of Guise, after a siege of 

only eight days. 

Cardinal Reginald Pole, Archbishop of Canter- 
Noted bury 1550, 1500-1558; Bishop Gardiner, 
Persons. 1483-1555; and Bonner, Bishop of London 
in 1540, *1495-1569, zealous supporters of the Pope; 
Cranmer, 1489-1556; Bishop Hugh Latimer, *1471, 
executed 1555; Bishop Nicolas Bidley, 1500, executed 
1555; Sebastian Cabot, *1477-*1557, a noted merchant 
and navigator; Henry Bradshaw, Chief Baron of the 
Exchequer, died 1553; Richard Cooke, classical critic, 
died 1558; John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, 
Lord High Admiral, 1502, executed 1553; John 
Hooper, Bishop of Gloucester in 1551, martyr 1495- 
1555; Sir Richard Morgan, Chief Justice of the Com- 
mon Pleas, died 1556; John Philpot, Archdeacon of 
Winchester, martyr, executed 1555; Sir Thomas Pope, 
politician and founder of Trinity College, Oxford, 



146 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

*1506-1559; Edward Courtney, Earl of Devonshire, 
who refused in 1553 to marry Queen Mary, died 1556; 
Sir Nicholas Hare, Master of the Kolls in 1553, died 
1557 ; Clement Higham, Chief Baron of the Exchequer 
in 1558, died 1570; Albert, Earl of Mansfield, states- 
man, 1480-1560; Matthew Parker, Archbishop of 
Canterbury (1557), 1504-1575; Sir Anthony Saint 
Leger, Royal Commissioner in Ireland *1496-1559; 
Richard Yeoman, martyr, executed 1558. 

Bishop Gardiner was Chief Administrator during 
Mary's reign. 

(44) ELIZABETH. 
1558 — 1603. 
She was born at Greenwich, September 7, 1533, 
Birtii and ^"*^ ^"^^^^ ^^^^ daughter of Henry VIII., and 
Parentage. Anne Boleyn. She was never married. 

Accession to ^^^^ ^^^^ crowncd at Westminster, Janu- 

the Throne, ary 15, 1559. 

Her death occurred March 24, 1603 (hastened as is 
supposed by the loss of her favorite, the 
Earl of Essex), at Richmond. She was 
buried at Exeter. 

AVhen Elizabeth ascended the throne, she was in 
Person 1 A ^^^^ twenty-fiftli year. In [)ers()nal beauty 
pearanceaud she surpassod her mother. Of command- 
ing form, with a face beaming with intelli- 
gence, her eyes full of fire, she looked every inch a 
queen. She Avas a bold horse-woman, a good shot, 
a graceful dancer, skilled in music, and scholarly 
beyond her age. Latin and even Greek were familiar 



HOUSE OF TUDOR. 147 

to her, and slie loved to study the masters in both 
languages. The modern languages she spoke with 
fluency, and enjoyed the reading of Ariosto and Tasso. 
She had ever a smile and word of encouragement ior 
the great writers of her own age, while Shakespeare, 
Jonson and Spenser were doubtless inspired to higher 
efforts by the consciousness that their work was appre- 
ciated by their sovereign. Her address was frank and 
hearty; she loved her people and desired their love, 
and with dauntless courage sought always to promote 
their welfare. Her harsh and manlike voice, and even 
her hand, was sometimes lifted against her nobles, and 
she would treat her ministers with much sever- 
ity, but for her people she had only kindness. 
"Nothing" (slie said to her first Parliament), "no 
worldly thing under the sun is so dear to me, as the 
love and good-will of my subjects." Her yoke was 
sometimes galling to them, but they needed only to call 
her attention to a real grievance to gain at once 
relief. She knew how to choose her ministers and 
attendants, but she was acquainted also with the feel- 
ings of her people. She had a peculiar pride in their 
well-being, and knew how to promote it. 

She inherited from her mother a sensuous, self- 
indulgent nature. She loved splendor and pleasure. 
She delighted in gorgeous dress, in ornaments and 
jewels; in progresses from entertainment to entertain- 
ment, at lordly castles; in fulsome adulation; and 
whatever was beautiful in woman or man, was attrac- 
tive to her. She had, however, a nature hard as 
iron, and an intellect clear and sharp as a cimeter. 



148 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Oiitwardly luxurious and pleasure-loving, she was 
frugal in her common life, and England had no more 
persistent worker. AVitli a council composed of emi- 
nent men she was the ruler of it, and her ministers 
knew that hers was the master-mind of them all, and 
that she had the keenest intuition. She showed her 
political tact in maintaining the peace of England, 
thus preserving the lives of lier subjects and the 
wealth of her citizens, without imposing the burden 
of sustaining a standing army upon the people. She 
enjoyed for almost half a century, in the boundless 
regard and devotion of her people, the highest reward 
that a sovereign can have. 

She cherished no resentments. Indifferent to 
abuse, her good humor was never disturbed, even by 
the calumnies of the Jesuits. She was absolutely in- 
sensible to fear, and knew hf)\v to conciliate both her 
Roman Catholic and Protestant subjects. She cared 
more for public order than for any religious difference, 
making this her first interest and supreme study. 
Says Mitchell: "She was one of the forces that 
went to endow what is called the English literature of 
her day; so instructed was she; so full of talent; so 
keen-sighted; so exact — a most extraordinary woman. 
We inust not think her greatness factitious, and at- 
tributable only to her because she was a queen. Tliere 
could be no greater mistake. . . . She would 
anywhere have made an atmosphere of intellectual 
ambition aV)out her; she would have struck fire from 
flinty souls; and so she did in her court; she inspired 
work, inspired ambition; may we not say that she 
inspired genius? " 



HOUSE OF TUDOR. 149 

She had found England poor, ignorant and de- 
pressed, — she left it rich, honored, learned and pros- 
perous, sorrowful only in her death. 

The bloody persecution of the Protestants by 
Notable Mary, had produced its usual effect in 

Events. greatly strengthening that body, and rend- 

ering the Roman Catholics most unpopular. Eliza- 
beth's accession to the throne was hailed with joy, and 
under her administration the evangelical element be- 
came every day stronger, while the papal power 
steadily diminished in strength. 

At her coronation a petition was presented, stating 
that it was customary on such occasions to release a 
number of prisoners. The petitioners, therefore, en- 
treated her majesty to " restore to freedom Matthew, 
Mark, Luke and John, and also the Apostle Paul, who 
had been for some time shut up in a strange lan- 
guage.'' The English prayer-book, substantially as 
now used, was accordingly established. The clergy 
were required, by a statute of 1559, to use it exclu- 
sively, and the special court, called the " High Com- 
mission Court," was employed to try those refusing 
to sustain the established form of worship. 

Mary, Queen of Scots, daughter of the eldest 
sister of Henry VIII., a Avoman fascinating in her 
personal beauty, and of winning manners, very ambi- 
tious, but without regard for truth, had assumed the 
arms and title of Queen of England, and sought 
refuge within its limits, when dej)rived of the Scot- 
tish throne in 1507. But her intrigues for the Eng- 
lish crown being well known, she was imprisoned for 



150 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

eighteen years in Fotlieringay Castle and elsewhere, 
but daring that time every attention Avas paid to 
lier personal comfort. Her ambitious claims and 
her strouj; attachment to the Roman Catholic reli- 
gion, made a most dangerous rival of this woman 
of powerful intellect, who had besides a grace and 
brilliancy of manner unequalled in the realm. In 
loSC), the people were excited by rumors of repeated 
attempts on the life of Elizabeth, made by fanatics 
Avho were believed to have acted by Mary's orders. 
It is certain that the latter knew and approved of a 
vow made by Anthony Babington and a band of young 
Catholics, for the most part connected with the royal 
household, to kill the Queen. The seizure of Mary's 
correspondence by AValsingham, made it clear that 
she was privy to the plot. She was tried by a com- 
mission of peers, and their verdict of guilty was 
received with expressions of joy throughout Great 
Britain. Parliament presented a petition for her exe- 
cution, and the council pressed eagerly for it. But 
Elizabeth shrank from inflicting the penalty of death, 
and absolutely refused tcj sign the warrant. Some 
months later, however, the pressure brought to bear 
upon her was so great, that a sullen consent was 
wrested from her. She flung the warrant on the floor, 
and declared that the council alone must l)e respon- 
sible for it. Mary died bravely, comforting her 
friends with cheering words, February 8, 1587. 

The destruction of the great Armada of Spain, 
by the English navy during this reign, gave to 
England power on the ocean; and the adventures of 



HOUSE OF TUDOR. 151 

Sir Francis Drake, avIio penetrated the Pacific and 
swept tlie unguarded coast of Chili and Peru in 1587, 
returning with spoils of more than half a million, 
incited others to imitate his example. Whoever had 
means to fit out a ship, was at liberty to ravage the 
seas, and no nation had any rights which another was 
bound to respect. England gained at this time that 
supremacy in naval warfare which she kept for two 
centuries. With better ships and better seamen than 
other nations, she was long the terror of the seas. 
Drake was the first Englishman to make a voyage 
around the world, taking three years to accomplish it. 
He brought potatoes from Santa Fe, and planted them 
in Lancaster. Sir Walter Raleiijh has long: been cred- 
ited with the introduction of tobacco into England, 
but Stowe, in his Annals, states that tobacco came into 
England about the year 1577. Ralph Lane, the first 
governor of Virginia, in 1586, introduced the " imple- 
ments and materials of tobacco-smoking," which he 
handed to Paleigh, who by their use acquired the 
credit of bringing tobacco itself into England. 

The Bodleian Library, at Oxford, was founded. 
The East India Company was formed. The Irish 
rebelled again in 1509. The Earl of Essex was sent 
with a considerable force to subdue them, but entering 
into a truce with the rebels, he returned to England 
and fell under the displeasure of the Queen. His 
courage surpassing his wisdom, he incited an insur- 
rection against her, but it was soon quelled, and 
Essex was beheaded. Irelantl was a constant source 
of trouble antl expense during this reign. Sir John 



152 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Parrott proposed as a remedy, that the laws of Eng- 
land should be extended to it, and bridges and roads 
built, and the inhabitants encouraged to develop the 
resources of the country. But unfortunately the plan 
was considered too expensive, and the project failed. 

Elizabeth's parliaments Avere summoned at intervals 
of three to five years, and then only in case of urgent 
necessity. Their power, however, was growing steadily, 
and when in 1601 they complained of the monopolies 
which the rulers of England had heretofore been in 
the habit of granting to their favorites and others, 
she thanked the House for its interference, and grace- 
fully surrendered this privilege. 

The ease with which money was made in this reign 
by privateers and merchants, led to improved modes 
of living as well as to extravagance. Pewter replaced 
wooden trenchers, and silver plate, to some limited 
extent, came into use. Carpets superseded the filthy 
flooring of rushes, and the Elizabethan architecture 
took the place of gloomy walls and serried battlements. 
Glass began to be freely used, letting in light and 
sunshine. The lavishness of new wealth caused a 
marked improvement in the dress of the period. The 
Queen had three thousand robes, and was brilliant in 
jewels, and "men wore a manor on their backs." The 
marked influence of Italian fashions in dress, man- 
ners, habits of life so far as climate and surroundings 
would permit, and in the literature of the period, is a 
feature not to be overlooked. 

The care of the poor, wlio had hitherto been a con- 
stant menace, ready for any lawless adventure, was 



HOUSE OF TUDOR. 153 

provided for in 15(34. The act of ISd Elizabeth, per- 
fected a system caring for the indigent, and providing 
labor for the mendicant able to work. Its machinery 
proved efficacious, and was retained in successful 
operation until a recent period. 

The responsibility of first bringing negroes from 
Africa to be sold into slavery, rests upon Sir John 
Hawkins. The spread of commerce brought to England 
the luxuries of Italy, and all that was best on the con- 
tinent. Silk stockings were first worn by Queen 
Elizabeth. Pocket watches were introduced from 
Nuremberg in Germany. The Royal Exchange, in 
London, was founded by Sir Thomas Gresham, in 
1556. The art of making paper from linen rags, was 
first practiced in England at Dartford, in Kent. West- 
minster School was founded by Queen Elizabeth, in 
1590, and the same year Eugby School was founded 
by L. SherifPe. The Middle Temple was built 1562- 
1572, and restored 1830 to 1832. Gray's Inn was 
built in 1560. 

The first covered buildings constructed for theat- 
rical representations, were the " Globe Theater " and 
the " Curtain " in Shoreditch, erected in the year 
1570. Before these dates, the drama was presented, 
as in the Globe, in places open to the sky, and which 
could be used only in warm and pleasant weather. 
Telescopes were invented by Jansen, a spectacle maker 
at Middleburg, Holland. Knives were first made in 
London by one Matthew, on Fleet bridge, in 1560, 
though the " Sheffield whittle " ante-dates this. The 
.first newspaper published in London, called '" The 

\ 



154 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

English Mercurie," and dated July, 1588, is still pre- 
served ill the British Museum. The population of 
the kingdom was 5,000,000, and of London about 
160,000. Sunday was observed, as on the continent, 
as a day of recreation. Servile labor was forbidden, 
but amusements and theatrical representations were 
on that day visited by Elizabeth and her court, and 
were lawful at any time except during the hours of 
religious worship, Sunday being the Queen's favorite 
day for this purpose. 

Hops were first used in brewing in 1521. The first 
ships for commercial intercourse with India were fitted 
out in 1591. The first charter for the India trade was 
granted to a London company in 1602. 

Philip II., of Spain, soon after the death of his 
Avife Mary, Elizabetirs sister, made pro- 

Wars. . 

posals of marriage to the Queen, which she 
rejected. To avenge this affront, to promote the in- 
terests of the Pope, and to punish the depredations 
which had been made on his shores by English sea- 
men, he early in 1588 fitted out a fleet, which he called 
the Invincible Armada, for the invasion of England. 
It consisted of 150 large and small ships, with 2,650 
cannon, 8,000 seamen, over 20,000 soldiers, and 2,000 
volunteers. It was commanded by the Duke of 
Medina Sidonia, supported by the ablest staff of 
Spain's naval officers. The English fleet consisted 
of 80 small ships, some of them little larger than 
a yacht of the present day, Avitli 9,000 hardy 
soldiers, whose admiral was Lord Howard of Effing- 
ham, supported by Drake and Hawkins, and the 



HOUSE OF TUDOR. 155 

best captains of the age. The fight lasted a week, 
from July 21, and one by one, galleon after galleon, 
was sunk. On the 29th of July, as the English sup- 
plies Avere giving out, Howard forced a general engage- 
ment and fired and sunk several of the enemy's ships, 
whereupon the Spaniards became demoralized and 
retreated just as victory would have been gained by 
patience. With a loss of 1,000 men they fled north- 
ward. The English vessels could not follow them as 
their supplies were exhausted, but the storms of the 
Northern seas destroyed the remnant of Spain's great 
navy, and 8,000 Spaniards perished between the 
Giant's Causeway and the Blankets. 

In 1597, a Spanish fleet again set sail for the Eng- 
lish coast, but as in the case of its predecessor, chan- 
nel storms proved more destructive than the English 
guns, and the ships were wrecked and almost destroyed 
in the bay of Biscay. Peace with Spain was declared 
in IGOl, 

Shakespeare 1564-1616; Francis Beaumont 1585- 
Noted 1*'^15' and John Fletcher 1576-1625, 

Persons. dramatic writers and colleagues; Philip 
Massinger *1585-1610, dramatist; John Ford, 1586- 
*1639, dramatist; James Shirley, 1591-1666, drama- 
tist, poet and scholar; Christopher Marlowe, 1564*- 
1593, dramatist and poet; Robert Greene, *1560-1592, 
litterateur and poet; Edmund Spenser, *1553-1599, 
poet; Sir Philip Sidney, 1554-1586, statesman and poet; 
Roger Ascham, 1515-1568, tutor to Queen Elizabeth; 
Michael Drayton, 1563-1631, poet; William Camden, 
1551-1623, litterateur and antiquarian; James 



156 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Crichton {The Admirable) 1560-1583; Kapliael Hol- 
inshed, historian, died 1580; John Stowe, 1525-1605, 
antiquarian and historian; John Knox, 1505-1572, re- 
former; Bishop Kichard Hooker, 1551-1600, Master 
of the Temple; Sir Francis Drake, *1515-1596, 
navigator; William Cecil, Lord Burleigh, Lord Trea- 
surer, 1520-1598; Bernard Andreas, poet laureate, 
died *1522; Archibald Angus, Earl of Douglas, hus- 
band of Margaret Tudor, died 1511; William Aubrey, 
scholar 1529-1595; Sir Rol)ert Bell, Chief Baron of 
the Exchequer, died 1577; William Bill, first Dean of 
Westminster, died 1560; John Birch, Baron of the 
Exchequer in 1563, 1515-1581; Robert Cooke, 
Clarenceaux King-at-arms, died 1592; William Cor- 
dell. Master of the Bolls in 1558, died 1581; Thomas 
Sackville Earl of Dorset, poet and statesman 1527- 
1608. 

The following were Queen Elizabeth's chief 
administrators: Sir Nicholas Bacon, Lord Keeper in 
1558, 1510-1579; Sir AVilliam Cecil (Lord Burleigh) 
chief minister in 1564, and for the most part of this 
reign; Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester *1532- 
1588; Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex 1567-1601, 
general and favorite ; Lord Buckhurst, Privy Councilor 
in 1601; Sir Thomas Gresham, 1519-1579, was famous 
as a merchant and as the founder of the Royal 
Exchange. 



HOUSE OF TUDOE. 157 

HISTORICAL MEMORANDA CONNECTED WITH THE 
HOUSE OF TUDOR. 

The wonderful growth of England, under the 
Tudors, is due to the cultivation, by this dynasty, of 
the arts of peace. The members of this royal house 
were noted for courage and force of will, and, while 
sometimes they exercised their power Avith vio- 
lence and cruelty, they were always loyal to England. 
Her welfare was always dear to them, being their first 
and greatest object. Kelying upon the loyalty of 
their subjects, they maintained no armed force, 
though they occasionally invaded the rights of the 
Church and the aristocracy. 

The freedom of England from the yoke of any 
religious body, owing to the increase of knowledge, 
whereby the laity became independent of tlie clergy, 
gave to the realm energy and growth. The Church 
of England was established and strengthened. Her 
prayers, her lessons and homilies were substantially 
tJie same as to-day. 

The advance in literature was indeed marvelous. 
A constellation of genius in all branches of letters, 
has given to this period the name, well deserved, of 
" the golden age of English literature." 

The insecurity of human life, especially at court, 
is notable. Henry VIII., in his pride, lust and greed, 
was the means of destroying all his prominent 
ministers, while a large proportion of the eminent 
men of his reign, ended their lives on the scaffold. 

The drama, in Elizabeth's time, attained an emi- 



158 ENGLAND AND ITS liULEKS. 

nence never since equalled. The opportunity of see- 
ing the choicest plays acted in the best manner, was 
part of every Englishman's privilege. The theaters 
were accessible to all, the best places costing only a 
shilling, while a very good seat could be obtained for 
a penny in the money of that period. 

Great progress was made in the study of theology, 
also, under the guidance of Hooker and other eminent 
divines; while the Bible, (printed in vast numbers and 
sold at a Ioav price throughout the kingdom,) exerted a 
powerful influence in the advancement of the nation 
in all the arts of civilized life. 

Commerce made vast strides, and England became 
mistress of the sea; while the advance in her wealth 
resulting from a trade extending over the civilized 
world, enriched her with the products of other nations. 

Until the reign of Edward VI., foot-soldiers con- 
tinued to use the long boAv, but it was superseded at 
that time by match-lock guns and pistols; while can- 
non began to be effective. Henry VIII. established a 
permanent navy, and built several ships of upwards of 
1,000 tons register. Under Elizabeth, the largest 
men-of-war carried forty cannon and a crew of several 
hundred men. 

Life in cities was luxurious, but the farmer was 
glad of a wooden trencher for his food. Vegetables 
and fresh meat were almost unknown to him. His 
cottage was built of sticks and mud, without a chim- 
ney, and was almost without furniture. 

The rich paid little attention to cleanliness, and 
when the filth and vermin in one of their mansions 



HOUSE OF TUDOR. 159 

became unendurable, tliey left it, "to sweeten," as 
they called it, and sought another. A great variety 
of food was served to them, sometimes on silver 
dishes, but fingers were used in place of forks. They 
drank beer for breakfast and supper, having neither 
tea nor coffee. Carriages and wheeled vehicles were 
almost unknown. Journeys were performed on horse- 
back, and merchandise was transported in the same 
manner. 



1G03 — 1649. 
HOUSE OF STUAKT. 

FIRST EPOCH. 

(45) JAMES I. OF ENGLAND, AND VI. OF SCOTLAND. 

1603 — 1G25. 

James was born at Edinburgh Castle, June 19, 
Birth and 1^6(3, and was the son of Henry Stuart 
Parentage. (Lord Damley), and Mary, Queen of Scots, 
who was beheaded by Elizabeth. 

He was crowned King of Great Britain, at West- 
Accession to minster, July 25, 1603, and reigned until 
the Throne. 1G25. James succeeded to the throne by 
reason of the marriage of his grandfather, James IV. 
of Scotland, with Margaret, daughter of Henry VII. 
He married Anne, daughter of Frederick 

Marriage. 

II., of Denmark, August 20, 1589. 
Henry, who died in 1612, at the age of nineteen, 
in his father's lifetime; Charles; and Eliza- 

Issuo. 

betli, who married in 1613, Frederick, King 
of Bohemia. The crown was settled in case of failure 
of James' male issue, on Frederick's youngest 
daughter, Sophia and her heirs, because they were 
Protestants. Sophia married the Duke of Brunswick, 
from whom is descended the present reigning dy- 
nasty in Britain. 

He died March 27, 1625, of a tertian ague, at 

loO 



HOUSE OF STUART. 



161 



his palace Theobalds, in Hertfordshire, and was 

buried at Westminster. Queen Anne, his 

consort, died March 1, 1619, 

The son of Queen Mary and of Lord Darnley, the 

handsomest couple of their age, he was 

Personal Ap- , „ ^ . , . ,„^^ 

pearanceand lumpish, not to saj deformed m his peison, 
Character. ^^^^^^^^^. -^^ j^-^ ^j^.^ ^^^^ Ungainly in his man- 
ners. He had an awkward figure, a rolling eye, a 
rickety sidelong walk, nervous tremblings, a slob- 
bering mouth, and a boyishness of manner which 
formed a ludicrous contrast to the airs of dignity and 
regal state, which he was constantly laboring to assume. 
These imperfections, it is true, might be found in 
the best and greatest of men, and it is seldom indeed 
that nature is equally lavish in physical and mental 
endowments. But in this king, the ungainliness of 
his outward man was not redeemed by intellectual or 
moral qualities calculated to insure admiration or 
regard. He possessed some learning indeed, and 
wiUiin a narrow circle exhibited considerable ingenuity 
of speculation on subjects connected with government 
and morals. But his understanding was deficient 
alike in depth and in soundness; his principles were 
loose, vague, and undefined; his prejudices ridicu- 
lously gross; his credulity boundless; and his conceit 
only to be matched by his pedantry and imbecility. 
Asa king, he was perhaps the most extraordinary phe- 
nomenon that history has ever presented to the wonder 
of mankind. Wliat policy would have induced wise 
tyrants to conceal, James was continually obtruding 
on all who had the patience to listen to him. Des- 



102 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

potic theories of government, and wordy pretensions 
to arbitrary power, were continually in his mouth ; and 
whilst he had not a regiment of guards to enforce his 
doctrines, he talked Avith more confidence than Hadrian 
would have judged it wise to assume, when at the 
head of eighty legions, and the master of the world. His 
boldness of speech was only equalled by his timidity 
in action. He had all the superstitions of the age, 
and one of liis first acts was to issue a law punishing 
witclicraft. 

His theories of kingcraft, and his determination to 
assert his absolute independence of Parliament and 
people, recognizing no law but his own will, led to 
that conflict which resulted in the downfall of his 
house. The whole Stuart regime was simply a struggle 
between the divine right of kings and the divine right 
of the people, in which the latter was victorious. 

Prior to 1007, so little importance had been at- 
Notabie taclicd to the proceedings of Parliament, 
Events. that uutil tliis year no regular journal of 

their transactions had been kept. The origin of the 
custom is due to Sir Edwin Sandys. 

The King having treated the Catholics rigorously, 
ruining them by enormous fines, and driving their 
priests from the country, aroused their enmity. One 
of the sufferers named Robert Catesby, with the aid 
of Guy Fawkes, a Yorkshire man, and about a dozen 
more, formed a plot to blow up Parliament House on 
the day when the King was to open the session, No- 
vember 5, 1005. The Gunpowder Plot, as it is 
called, was discovered, the conspirators executed, and 



HOUSE OF STUABT. 163 

the Catholics treated thereafter with more severity 
than before. 

The present translation of the Bible, called King 
James' version, was perfected in three years (1()07- 
1610) by forty-seven divines appointed by the King. 
It was printed in Roman type in 1611. The previous 
editions of the Bible had been printed in what is now 
called " Old English," but which, in reality, was type 
of the German character, brought by Caxton into Eng- 
land when he introduced the art of printing. The 
excellence to which tlie Eiifjlish languajxe had attained 
at this period through the labors of Shakespeare, 
Bacon, and the great English waiters of Elizabeth's 
time, is nowhere better shown than in this translation. 

The first permanent American settlement by the 
English was effected in this reign. In 1607, a Loudon 
joint stock company of merchants and adventurers 
established a colony on the coast of Virginia, at a 
place which they called Jamestown. It consisted of 
gentlemen, but negro slavery being introduced, large 
quantities of tobacco were raised for export, and in 
less than twelve years it had become a self-governing 
community, with power to make its own laws. 

In 1612 the first English factory in India was 
established at Surat. The famous Charter-house 
School was founded in 1611. Brick buildings were 
first erected in London. The King, as a means of 
raising money, created the title of baronet, which 
was sold for £1,000, or any large sum obtainable. 
Horse-racing was established at Newmarket. Log- 
arithms were invented by Napier in 1614. Copper 



104 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

farthings and half-pence were introduced. In 1613, 
Sir Thomas Overbury was poisoned in the Tower by 
Robert Carr, Duke of Somerset, the King's favorite, 
for which he was banished (1615). George Yilliers 
took his place in the King's favor, and was created 
Duke of Buckingham, Lord High Admiral, etc. 

Cecil, Elizabeth's sagacious minister, served James 
wisely until his death in 1612. From that time the 
King maintained a bitter contest with liis Parliament, 
through their determination to support their own 
privileges and liberties against his claim to supreme 
power. He repeatedly violated their rights by reject- 
ing members who liad l)een legally elected, and im- 
prisoning those who dared to criticise his measures. 
Towards the end of his reign, the House protested 
vigorously, but the King, in gross violation of its 
liberties, seized its official journal and himself tore 
out the record of the protest. In 1614, the members 
refused all supplies of money to the King until he 
should redress their grievances. These instances of 
resistance should have warned the court, and the 
King's compliance would have saved the confusion and 
bloodshed of the next reign. 

By the accession of James, the crowns of England 
and Scotland were united under one sovereign, and he 
assumed the title of King of Great Britain. Each 
country, however, retained its own parliament, church 
and laws. In the first year of his reign a conspiracy 
was discovered, the object of which was to place upon 
the throne Lady Arabella Stuart, who was his first 
cousin, and equally descended from Henry VII. The 



HOUSE OF STUART. 10)5 

plot was, however, soon ended. Sir Walter Haloigli, 
convicted of having been engaged in it, was sentenced 
to death; but the sentence being suspended, he was 
imprisoned for thirteen years in the Tower. After 
that he was employed in an expedition against the 
Spaniards in South America, from which the King 
expected rich spoils. It however proved a failure, 
and on his return, in violation of all legal forms, as 
well as the rules of justice, Kaleigh was beheaded in 
pursuance of his former sentence, October 29, 1018. 
During his imprisonment in the Tower, he wrote the 
History of the World, a work more praised than read. 
The night before his judicial murder, he wrote on the 
fly-leaf of his Bible the following: 

"Even such is time, that takes on trust, 
Our youth, our joys, our all we have, 
And pays us but with age and dust: 
Who in the dark and silent grave, 
When we have wandered all our ways, 
Shuts up the story of our days: 
But from the earth, this grave, this dust, 
My God shall raise me up, I trust." 

The circulation of the blood M-as discovered by 
Harvey in 1019. Lord Bacon, Chancellor of Eng- 
land, was committed to the Tower, and fined £40,000 
for receiving bribes (1021) ; but he was shortly after- 
wards released, his fine remitted, and he was awarded 
a pension of £1,200 a year. 

The persecution by James of the Puritans, when, 
at the beginning of his rule, he declared he " would 
make them conform, or harry them out of the land," 
had driven many of them in 1008 into Holland, where 



166 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

all men Lad freedom of religious ojunions. In 1620, 
these Pilgrims embarked in the Mayflower, under 
Bradford and Brewster, and landing at Plymouth, in 
Massachusetts, established a colony on the basis of 
" equal laws for the general good." Ten years after, 
John Winthrop followed Avitli a small company and 
settled Salem and Boston. In the next decade no less 
than twenty thousand persons sought a home in the 
walds of America. 

Ireland was colonized by settlers from Scotland 
and England. The King granted to settlers the 
greater part of the Province of Ulster, which had 
been the scene of rebellion in Elizabeth's time, and 
had been seized by the crown. The city of London 
founded a colony there, called Londonderry, and Prot- 
estantism in this way gained and has since retained a 
foothold in the north of Ireland. 

James took part with the high churchmen as to the 
observance of Sunday, and issued a book of sports 
recommending certain games as lawful and desir- 
able on the Lord's day. Every minister was ordered 
to read the declaration in favor of Sunday pastimes, 
from the pulpit. 

Lambeth Palace, the residence of the Archbishops 
of Canterbury, dates back to the 13th century; but its 
noble library was founded in 1604, by Archbishop 
Bancroft. 

Robert Carr, Earl of Somerset, favorite of James 
i^o^g^j I., 1589-1638; George Yilliers, Duke of 

Persons. Buckingham, favorite of James I., 1592- 
1628; Edward Sackville, Earl of Dorset, 1590-1652; 



HOUSE OF STUART. 167 

William Herbert, Earl of Pembroke, poet, 1580-1630; 
Lord Edward Herbert of Cherbury, politician, 1581- 
1648 ; Sir Hugh Middleton, engineer and projector of 
New River water conduit, *1565-1631; Inigo Jones, 
architect, 1572-1652; Ben Jonson, poet, 1574-1637; 
Dr. William Harvey, discoverer of the circulation 
of the blood, 1578-1657; William Camden, anti- 
quarian, 1551-1623; George Chapman, poet and first 
translator of Homer, 1557-1634; AVilliam Parker 
Monteagle, the reputed discoverer of gunpowder plot; 
Guy Fawkes, conspirator, died 1(506; Robert Burton 
{Ancdomy of Melancholy) 1576-1639; Sir Walter 
Raleigh, navigator, statesman and historian, 1552- 
1618; John Calvin, divine, 1509-1564; John Dee, 
mathematician and astrologer, 1527-1608; John 
Donne, poet, 1573-1631; Michael Drayton, poet, 
1563-1631. 

The administrators and advisers of James I., 
were in 1608, Lord Buckhurst (Earl of Dorset), Earls 
of Salisbury, Suffolk and Northumberland; in 1612, Sir 
Robert Carr (Viscount Rochester and Earl of Somer- 
set) ; in 1615, Sir George Villiers (Duke of Bucking- 
ham); Francis Bacon (Lord Verulam and Viscount 
of St. Alban's), was Lord Chancellor in 1618. 



168 ENGLAND AND ITS IIULEKS. 

(46) CHARLES I. 
1625^1049. 

Charles was born at Duufermline, iii Fifesliire, 
Birth and Scotlaud, November 19, 1600, and was the 
Parentage, the eklest Surviving son of James I. 
Accession to ^^ ^^''^^ croAvned at Westminster, Feb- 

the Throne, ruarj 2, 1625, 

He espoused Henrietta, daughter of 

Marriage. *■ _ 

Henry IV., of France, June 13, 1(525. 
Charles, Prince of Wales; Mary, married to the 
Prince of Orange; James, Duke of York; 

Issue. 

Henry, Duke of Gloucester; Elizabeth; Ann 
and Henrietta, afterwards Duchess of Orleans. 

He was executed before the Banqueting House, 
Whitehall, January 30, 1619. His body 

Death. ... 

was exposed to public view in one of the 
apartments, and afterwards privately buried in St. 
George's Chapel, Windsor. Charles was the ninth 
English monarch who had died a violent death since 
1066. 

Charles was of middle stature and well propor- 
, . tioned; his hair was dark, his forehead high, 

Personal Ap- ' ' " ' 

pearancoand and his couuteuauce grave and melancholy. 
He was by nature courteous and polite; in 
his private relations conscientious and without re 
proach. But as a king, he deemed himself above 
those laws which control the individual. He was 
untruthful, without fidelity to either his friends, 
his subjects, or the realm. The people could not trust 
him, and as Carlyle has said: ''A man whose word 



HOUSE OF STUART. 169 

will not inform you what lie means or will do, is not a 
man you can make a bargain with. You must get out 
of that man's way, or put him out of yours." He 
was not more an enemy to the English people than 
to himself and his family. 

Shortly after his accession, Charles married Hen- 
Notabio rietta Maria, a French Catholic princess, 
Events. wliose religion was odious to a majority of 

the people, and whose habits were most extravagant. 
To meet her demand for money, and to raise funds lo 
carry on war with Spain, he was obliged to ask Parlia- 
ment for means. That body refused the requisite 
subsidies unless he would redress certain grievances, 
whereupon he dissolved it. Necessity soon compelled 
tlie summoning of a new Parliament, which at once 
drew up articles for the impeachment of the King's 
favorite and adviser, the Duke of Buckingham, a man 
generally distrusted and disliked. The King, to save 
his friend, dissolved this Parliament also, and pro- 
ceeded to supply his wants by illegal taxes and en- 
forced loans. John Hampden, a noble patriot and 
statesman, refused to submit to the imposition, 
saying, that he feared to incur the curse pronounced 
in Magna Carta on all asIio should infringe it. 
Hampden and many others, were imprisoned, and the 
violation of their rights produced general discontent 
and indignation. 

But illegal taxes did not satisfy the wants of 
the King, and he Avas forced again to assemble 
Parliament, and to his chagrin, Hampden, and others 
who sympatliized with him, were elected. Their first 



170 ENGLAND AND ITS EULERS. 

act was to present to the King a jjetition of right, 
affirming the chief provisions of Magna Carta. 
The spirit of the movers is shoAvn by the language 
of one of their number who declared: "We say no 
more than a worm trodden on would say, if he could 
speak: I pray you, tread on me no more/' Charles 
reluctantly, because he could raise money in no other 
way, signed it. But he at once violated it by 
restoring monopolies, whereby he granted to certain 
persons, in consideration of large sums, the exclusive 
privilege of dealing in nearly all the necessaries of 
life. A more oppressive measure can hardly be con- 
ceived. Said a member of Parliament, " The mo- 
nopolists have seized everything. They sip in our 
cup, they sup in our dish, they sit by our fire." 

For the next eleven years, or from 1629 to 1()41, 
no Parliament met, and the King in the meantime 
determined to govern by the use " of those means 
which God had put in his hands." Buckingham had 
been assassinated August 23, 1628. His successor 
was Thomas Wentworth, who in 1640 became Earl of 
Strafford. Strafford was the worthy tool of a tyrant; 
determined to make Charles absolute, with the privi- 
leges of a complete despot, in which he was aided by 
Bishop Laud, who soon became Archbishop of Canter- 
bury. A reign of tyranny never equalled in England 
ensued. Those who refused to pay illegal demands for 
money were imprisoned, and those who would not 
conform to the Established Church, were punished 
with severity. John Elliott, a leader in the Parlia- 
mentary party, was in 1629 sent to the Tower, for 



HOU.se of STUART. 171 

asserting [)opiilar rights, and died there tliree years 
afterwards, the first martyr for English liberty. 

The King, to obtain means to equip a standing 
army, forced the whole country to pay a tax known as 
ship-money; plainly illegal, because levied without 
consent of Parliament. John Hampden, again refus- 
ing to pay, was tried and sentenced to imprisonment. 
AVith his cousin, Oliver Cromwell, he embarked on 
a vessel in the Thames, designing to join the Puri- 
tans in America, but the King, unhappily for himself, 
thwarted this design. In 1633 the King visited 
Scotland and was crowned at Edinbui-gh. 

In 1()37 the King prohibited the publication of 
newspapers, and the same year he determined to 
compel the Scots to use the English Prayer-book, a 
measure most offensive to them. The people through- 
out Scotland resisted it with tumult and riot, and 
solemnly bound themselves by a covenant to resist 
any attempt to change their religion. The King 
was resolved to enforce compliance at the point of the 
SAvord; but for this purpose money was needed, and 
accordingly, in 1040, the famous Long Parliament 
was summoned. The spirit of this body was utterly 
opposed to the King, and in Avarm sympathy with 
the people, as many of their own number had been 
oppressed beyond endurance. Their first act was the 
impeachment of Strafford, who was convicted and 
executed in 1011. Laud's impeachment, trial and 
execution soon followed. 

In 10)11 the Star Chamber and High Commission 
Court were abolished, and a bill was passed requiring 



172 ENGLAND AND ITS EULERS. 

triennial parliaments, and that tlie one in session 
should not be dissolved without its own consent. It 
being rumored that Parliament was about to impeach 
the Queen for having conspired to destroy the 
liberty of the country, Charles determined to terminate 
its authoriljy by seizing Pym, Hampden, Hollis, 
Haselrig and Strode, leaders of the opposition. 
With an armed force the King invaded the House 
of Parliament, and attempted to arrest them, but 
they had found a refuge in the city, and the King was 
baffled in his purpose. Seeing that London was 
wholly in favor of popular rights, and therefore no 
safe place for him, in 1642 he left it. Parliament 
insisted that the King should give up to it the control 
of the militia. He refused to do so and appealed to 
arms. The civil war commenced in the year 1042, with 
the battle of Edgehill, Warwickshire, when the Cava- 
liers, so-called from their dashing horsemanship, under 
Prince Rupert, defeated the Parliament men, known, 
from their hair being cut short, as "Roundheads," 
under Essex and Fairfax. Cromwell realizing the 
inefficiency of the Parliamentary army, consisting, 
as he said, "of a set of poor tapsters, and town 
apprentices," proceeded to organize his famous regi- 
ment of " Ironsides." This regiment was never 
defeated. It could pray as well as fight, and soon 
became the most formidable force in England. 

In 1644, the Roundheads gained the battle of Mars- 
ton Moor. The next year they triumphed in the 
decisive battle of Naseby, which practically ended 
the war. Naseby's victorious field was won June 14, 



HOUSE OF STUART. 173 

1645. When the battle seemed lost, Cromwell's brigade 
turned the tide of defeat and wrested a victory from 
the King and Rupert, which ended the war. The 
royal artillery and baggage, even the ro}al papers, fell 
into the hands of Cromwell, and five thousand men 
surrendered. Among the papers were found docu- 
ments showing that Charles intended to betray those 
who were negotiating with him for peace, and was 
arranging for the aid of foreign troops. This dis- 
covery was more disastrous to him than his defeat 
at Naseby. 

After this battle, Charles fled to Scotland, but he 
was surrendered by the Scots to Parliament and taken 
to Holmby House, Northamptonshire. Ft)r two years 
his opponents sought to negotiate with him, but his 
obstinacy was invincible, and in 1048, finding that he 
was raising funds in Eni/land to iiiaujjurate another 

o o o 

campaign, they resolved to bring him to trial. 
Parliament was purged by Colonel Pride, who drove 
from it all those who were opposed to that measure, 
leaving only a remnant of about sixty members which 
was derisively called the " Pump Parliament.''' A high 
court of justice, consisting of one hundred and thirty- 
four persons, of which John Bradshaw was chief, 
was named by this body to try the King, and on 
January 20, 1049, he Avas brought into court, and a 
week later sentence of death was pronounced upon 
him " as a tyrant, traitor, murderer and public enemy." 
Throughout the trial he maintained an attitude of 
dignity and self-control. He was beheaded January 
30, 1049, in front of the Poyal Palace of AVhitehall, 
London. 



174 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Duriii<^ the years of tyranny Avhicli followed the 
close of the first Parliament of Charles, a great Puri- 
tan emigration peopled the states of New England. 
The State of Maryland received its name from Hen- 
rietta Maria, Queen of Charles I. A small band of 
Pilerim fathers had embarked in the Mayflower from 
Southampton, and landed, January 22, 1020, on a spot 
on the coast of Massachusetts, giving to this place 
the name of Plymouth, in memory of the last Eng- 
lish port at which they touched. In the same year 
Charles granted the cliarter which established the 
colony of Massachusetts. 

With Spain in 1025. With France, 1625-27, for 

the relief of the Huguenots at Rochelle. 
Wars. . . . * . . 

This expedition resulted in a disastrous fail- 
ure. Siege of Rochelle, October, 1027. Peace with 
France 1()30. 

With his subjects: 

Battle of Edgehill, Warwickshire, October 23, 1012, 
the first between the forces of Charles and the Par- 
amentarians, or Roundheads, Avlien great numbers 
fell on either side, and both parties claimed the victory. 

Battle of Chalgrove Field, near Oxford, June 18, 
1043. 

Battle of Atherton Moor, near Bradford, June 30, 
1043. 

Battle of Lansdown, Somersetshire, July 5, 10)43. 

Battle of Newbury, Berkshire, September 20, 1043. 
The King was present in these two battles. 

Battle of Marston Moor, Yorkshire, July 2, 1044. 
By this fight the scale was turned decisively against 



HOUSE OF STUART. 175 

the King and the Cavalier party. Oliver Cromwell 
was the principal leader of the Parliamentarian army, 
which included 21,000 Scots. 

Battle of Naseby, Northamptonshire, June 14, 
1645. This was the last of the battles fought by the 
Royalists for Charles. 

Thomas Howard, Earl of Arundel, Marshal and 
Noted patron of arts, acquirer of the Arundel 

Persons. marbles, *1580-1646; AVilliam Laud, Arch- 
bishop of Canterbury (1633), 1573-1645; Thomas 
Wentworth, Earl of StrafPord, 1593-1641; John 
Hampden, patriot, 1594-1643; John Selden, states- 
man and archaeologist, 1584-1654; Sir Edward Coke, 
Lord Chief Justice, 1549-1634; Oliver Cromwell, 
1599-1658 ; Lucius Cary, Viscount Falkland, Secre- 
tary of State, 1610-1643; Prince Rupert, 1619-1682; 
Isaac Walton, 1598-1683; "Ben" Jonson, poet 
laureate and dramatist, 1574-1637; Sir W. Davenant, 
dramatist, 1605-1668; John Digby, Earl of Bristol, 
1580-1653; Francis Quarles, 1592-1644; Joseph Hall, 
Bishop of Exeter, 1629, of Norwich, 1641, 1574-1656. 

The ministers of Charles I. were, in 1625, George 
Villiers, Duke of Buckingham ; in 1()28, Earl of Port- 
land and Archbishop Laud; in 1640, Archbishop 
Laud, Thomas Wentworth, Earl of Straiford, and 
Lord Cottington ; in 1641, Lucius Cary, Viscount 
Falkland, and John Digby, Earl of Bristol. 



1^Q ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

THE COMMONWEALTH. 

1649 — 1G53. 

Immediately after the execution of Charles, the 
House of Commons passed a statute dissolving the 
Constitution both civil and ecclesiastical. A few 
weeks afterward they abolished the House of Lords. 
England was now governed by a Council of State, of 
which John Bradshaw was president, and John Milton 
foreign secretary. Fairfax and Cromwell commanded 
the army. Cromwell, as its real chief, exercised a 
sway powerful as any monarch. The use of the Eng- 
lish Church service was forbidden, and the statues of 
Charles Avere torn down and destroyed. The great 
seal was broken, and a new one adopted, having a map 
of the British islands on one side, and on the other a 
representation of the Commons in session, with the 
legend, "In the first -year of freedom, by God's 
blessinij restored, 11)48.'" 

The new Council was composed of too many ex- 
tremists, "Levellers," " Comeouters," "Communists," 
" Adventists," and half crazy fanatics, and therefore 
lacked the elements of stability. In Ireland, the 
Ptoyalists had proclaimed Prince Charles King. 
Cromwell was deputed to reduce that country to order, 
and with his " Ironsides," descended on the unhappy 
island " like a whirlwind of fire and slaughter." This 
war, like that of the ancient Jews, was one of exter- 
mination, and very few of the devoted Irishmen were 
left to tell the story. To this day, the direst impre- 



THE COMMONWEALTH. 177 

cation a southern Irishman can utter, is, " the curse of 
Cromwell on ye." 

Prince Charles found friends in Scotland, who at- 
tempted to aid him, under the leadership of the gallant 
Montrose, but they were defeated, and their leader 
beheaded. In 1050, a Scottish force under Leslie, 
was completely routed at Dunbar. Twelve months 
later was fought the battle of Worcester, where 
Charles suffered an overwhelming ajid decisive defeat. 
The Prince escaped into Shropshire, where he hid for 
a day in an oak at Boscobel. After many hair-breadth 
escapes he found refuge in France. 



178 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

THE PROTECTORATE — OLIVER CROMWELL. 

1653 — 1658. 

Oliver Cromwell was born at Huntingdon, April 
Birth and '^'^' 1599, and was the son of a private 
Parentage, gentleman. In 1653, by Act of Parliament, 
he was made Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of 
England, Scotland and Ireland, which position he 
held until his death. 

He married Elizabeth, daughter of Sir 

Marriage. r> t-> • -< > ">/\ 

James Bouchier, ot Essex, in l()z(). 
Kichard, born October 1, 1(52(5; Henry; Bridget, 
married to Henry Ireton, and afterwards to 

Issue. 

Lieutenant General Fleetwood; Elizabeth, 
married to John Claypole; Mary, married to Lord 
Viscount Faulconbridge ; and Frances, who was mar- 
ried to Robert Ptich, and subsequently to Sir John 
Russel. 

He died of a tertian ague, on the 3rd of Sep- 
tember, 1()58, the anniversary of his vic- 
tories at Dunbar and Worcester. He was 
interred with great magnificence at Westminster. 

Cromwell's religious enthusiasm combined with a 
, . strona: intellect, steady courage, and all the 

Personal Ap- p ' J » ' 

pearanceand qualities necessary to make a great soldier, 
rendered him invincible. He prayed with 
his men before he drilled them, and imparted to them 
his own valor and trust in a higher Power. After the 
battle of Marston Moor, when he completely routed 
Rupert's troopers (July 2, 1644), he wrote, "God 



THE PROTECTORATE. 179 

made them as stubble to our swords." A courtier of 
that day describes him as plainly dressed, his linen 
not very clean, with a speck or two upon his little 
band; his stature of good size; his countenance swol- 
len and reddish; his voice sharp and untunable, and 
his eloquence full of fervor. His contemporaries 
called him " Ironsides," which well expressed his 
character. 

April 20, 1G53, the Rump Parliament Avas driven 
Notable ^^^^ ^^J Cromwoll and his soldiers, who told 
Events. them, "It is not fit you should sit here any 

longer. You should give place to better men." 

Cromwell, as Captain General of the forces, was 
obliged temporarily to maintain public order, but was 
thoroughly sustained by the people in expelling the 
Rump Parliament. " AVe did not hear a dog bark at 
their going," he said. Eight officers of high rank and 
four civilians, with Cromwell at the head, were made 
a provisional Council of State, and by them was 
assembled the Convention of 150 men, called from 
one of their numljer, known as Praise-God Barebone, 
the " Barebone's Parliament." But such were their 
internal dissensions that in December, 1653, they 
abdicated and restored to the Lord-General Cromwell, 
the power received from him, and he was given the 
title of Lord Protector. A Parliament was con- 
vened again in 1654, which consisted of 400 members 
from England, 30 from Scotland, and 30 from Ireland. 
Cromwell announced that no member should be 
suffered to enter the house without signing an engage- 
ment not to alter the government, as it is settled in 



180 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

a single person and a parliament. Only one Inm- 
dred members refnsed to sign, but as the House 
disputed his authority and hotly contested the ques- 
tion whether he should have the power of veto, 
Cromwell dissolved Parliament. Henceforth until his 
death his reign was substantially a despotism, 
although his power was wielded witli singular wisdom 
and success. In IGoC), a Parliament, again convened 
in Cromweirs interest, .offered him the crown, which 
lie declined. 

On June 2(), lODT, the Protector was given power 
to name his successor, but afterwards the office was to 
be an elective one. The remainder of his life was 
memorable in the annals of England on account 
of his successful European campaign. He was an 
honest man, a brilliant Christian soldier, and a sincere, 
strong-minded patriot. 

Piichard, the eldest son of Oliver, was proclaimed 
Protector on his father's decease; but he soon signed 
his abdication, retiring first to the continent and 
afterwards to his paternal estate at Cheshunt. Ho 
had no sympathy with the Puritan or so-called " godly 
party," and such a life as his fathers, from his expe- 
rience of it, Avas not likely to be congenial to him. 
He, therefore, joyfully laid down the cares of state, 
to obtain release from a burden too heavy for him 
to bear. To the people he was familiarly known 
as "Tumbledown Dick.'' The nation gave him a 
moderate pension, and his life though quiet, was far 
happier than his father's had been. It is said that 
years after his abdication, he visited Westminster, and 



THE PROTECTORATE. 181 

when the attendant, who did not recognize him, showed 
him the throne, he exclaimed, "Yes; I have not seen 
that chair since I sat in it myself in 1G59." He died 
at Cheshunt July 13, 1712. 

Eobert Blake, 1599-1657; Sir William Penn, 
jj^^^^ M. P., 1621-1670; Von Tromp, a Dutch 

Persons. admiral, 1597-1653; General George 
Monk, 1608-1670; Charles Fleetwood, died 1692; Sir 
Harry Vane, statesman, 1612-1662; Edmund Waller, 
poet, 1605-1687; Abraham Cowley, poet, 1618-1667; 
Sir John Denham, Irish poet, 1615-1668; Thomas 
Hobbes, political writer, 1588-1679; Edward Hyde, 
Earl of Clarendon, 1608-1674, Lord Chancellor and 
historian; Thomas Otwa}-, dramatist, 1651-1685; Sir 
W. Dugdale, antiquarian, 1605-lf)86; Thomas Fuller, 
royalist and biographer, 1608-1661; Sir Matthew 
Hale, Chief Justice of King's Bench in 1671, 1609- 
1676; James Usher, Bishop of Meath in 1621, of 
Carlisle 1642, historian and chronologer, 1580-1656; 
Eobert Herrick, poet, 1591-1674; George Fox, a 
shoemaker, born at Drayton, in Lancashire, 1624- 
1690, founder of the sect called Quakers; James Gra- 
ham, Marquis of Montrose, born 1612, espoused the 
royal cause, and was hanged and quartered by the 
Covenanters at Edinburgh in 1650; Jeremiah White, 
chaplain to Oliver Cromwell, 1629-1707; John Milton, 
1608-1674, Avas private secretary to Cromwell, and 
lived with him at Whitehall during the Protectorate. 
Among the parliamentary generals were Henry Ireton 
(son-in-law of the Protector) 1610-1651; Lord Thomas 
Fairfax, 1611-1671; Sir William Waller, 1597-1668; 



182 ENGLAND AND ITS RULEKS. 

John Harrison, one of the judges of Charles L, and 
himself executed in 1G60; John Lambert, 1«V20- 
1692; Edmund Ludlow, *1620-1G93, one of the judges 
of Charles I. 



INTERREGNUM. 183 

INTERREGNUM. 
1659-1660. 

Oliver Cromwell was, as already stated, succeeded 
in office as Protector, by bis eldest sou Eicbard, wbo 
immediately convened a Parliament, to wbom tbe 
army presented a petition of remonstrance, demanding 
tbat some one in wbom tbey bad confidence sbould be 
put in command. Tbe House, bowever, voted not 
only tbat tbe remonstrance, but tbe meeting at wbicb 
it bad been formulated, was unlawful. Notbing 
could bave been more unfortunate for tbe permanency 
of tbe government tban tbis. Tbe army at once 
became a mob, and surrounding Ricbard's bouse, com- 
pelled bim to dissolve Parliament. Tbis act was 
soon followed by bis own abdication and tbe resigna- 
tion of bis brotbcr Henry, tben in command in 
Ireland. 

Tbis was tbe beginning of tbe end of tbe " Com- 
mon Avealtb.'" Tbe army restored tbe Rump Parlia- 
ment; but wben tbat party in turn endeavored to bum- 
ble and control tbe army, one of tbose " solemn fasts," 
wbicb generally preceded or attended eacb overt act, 
took place, and tbe army again rose and proceeded to 
elect a committee of twenty-tbree persons, seven of 
wbom were military men, and the remainder were 
loyal to tbe army. Tbis committee was invested witb 
sovereign power, and immediately establisbed a mili- 
tary government, wbicb gave every promise of being 
more tyrannical to tbe people tban any wbicb bad 



184 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

preceded it, and with less prospect of any redress for 
grievances, Jolm Lambert, a parliamentary officer, 
being one of its leading spirits. 

General George Monk (Earl of Albermarle), also 
a parliamentary general, a man of undoubted courage 
and ability, at once rose to the gravity of the situa- 
tion and placing himself at the head of an army of 
eight thousand A'eteran soldiers, marched from Scot- 
land to London. Everywhere, while en route, the gen- 
try flocked round him, expressing their desire for a 
new Parliament; but Monk was taciturn, reticent and 
non-committal. Meanwhile, after arriving in Lon- 
don, he succeeded in restoring a certain degree of 
order and securing the presence in Parliament of some 
expelled members; a renewal and enlargement of his 
own commission from that body and its dissolution 
after arranjjfinj' for callin<T a new Parliament. He also 
remodelled his army to meet the exigencies of the 
moment. 

General John Lambert, who had been confined 
in the Tower, escaped, but soon surrendered with 
his forces at Coventry. 

The new Parliament now assembled, with Sir Har- 
bottle Grimstone, a well known royalist, as its speaker. 

In consequence of negotiations with the exiled 
King, an agreement was soon reached with Parlia- 
ment; and Edward Montague (Earl of Sandwich), 
admiral, informed the King, who had meantime reached 
Holland, that the navy awaited his orders at Schevel- 
ing. The Duke of York, Lord High Admiral, then 
took command of the fleet. The Kiue: embarked and 



INTERREGNUM. 185 

landed at Dover, where he was met by General Monk, 
and at once proceeded to London, entering the city 
upon his birthday. May 29, IGGO, and was welcomed 
with the greatest joy by all the people. 



1060 - 1088. 
HOUSE OF STUART. 

SECOND EPOCH. 

(47) CHARLES II. 

1000 — 1085. 

„. ., . Charles II. was born at St. James Palace 

Birth and 

ParontaBc. May '29, 1030, and was the eldest son of 

King Charles I. 

Accession to ^^ ^^^'^ crowiied at Westminster, April 

the Throne. 23, 1001. 

He was married at Pin-tsniouth, May 20, 10()2, to 
the Infanta Catharine, of Portugal, daugh- 

Marriapo. i i t • 

ter of John IV., by whom he had no issue. 

An attack of apo[)lexy caused his death, February 

(), 10)85. He was buried at AVestminster. 

Death. <. , t.- -r. 

It is worthy of note, that Bishop Burnett, 
in the history of his times, expresses the opinion, or 
rather says, that there Avere apparent suspicions that 
he had been poisoned. 

In person Charles was tall, well proportioned, with 
, . a swarthy complexion, austere and forbid- 

Personal Ap- *' '■ 

pearance and ding features. Wearing his hair and beard 
after the manner then in vogue at the court 
of Louis XIV. His attire was copied from that of the 
French king; and court followers during this reign 
imitated both the dress and the manners of the French 

186 



HOUSE OF STUART. 187 

Chevaliers. His naturally souiicl and robust constitu- 
tion had been in youth impaired by indulgence. He 
afterwards labored to restore it by diet and exercise. 
In disposition he was kind, familiar, communicative; 
delighting in social converse; averse to parade and 
ceremony; eager, on all occasions, to escape from the 
trammels of official dignity to the ease and comfort of 
colloquial familiarity. He had good abilities, but 
these were joined to an insuperable anti2)athy to ap- 
plication, which disqualified him for business, and 
kept him in a state of ignorance disgraceful to one in 
his station. He sought amusement alone, and seems 
to have cared little for anything beyond the gratifica- 
tion of that })ropensity. He looked upon the practice 
of dissimulation as the grand secret in the art of 
reigning. Surrounded by men who made it their ob- 
ject, as it was their interest, to deceive him, his only 
protection, he argued, consisted in the employment of 
the same weapon, and it was necessary for him to 
deceive, that he might not be deceived. During his 
whole reign he was the slave of wcmien, and his Court 
became a school of vice, in which all the restraints of 
morality and even decency were laughed to scorn. 

Of Charles' pecuniary transactions with France, it 
is impossible to think without feelings of shame, or to 
speak, except in the language of reprobation. They 
were equally disgraceful in themselves, and humiliat- 
ing to the nation which had at its head a King who 
thus sold himself to its natural rival and enemy. That 
he cherished designs subversive of the liberties of his 
subjects, is evinced by the whole tenor of his conduct, 



188 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

especially during the latter part of his reign ; and had 
he been as active in his habits as he was untruthful in 
his character and despotic in disposition, the consti- 
tution might have been overthrown, and a monarchy 
as absolute as any in Europe erected on its ruins. 
With respect to what he was pleased to call his reli- 
gion, he appears to have been a deist; and although he 
had embraced the Roman Catholic faith before the 
restoration, yet he was not formally reconciled to the 
Church of Rome until the eve of his death. By tliis 
means he was enabled to play the hypocrite, and for 
five and twenty years to hold himself out as an ortho- 
dox Protestant, whilst he satisfied his conscience by 
secretly professing Romanism, although in reality he 
believed in no religion at all. Finally, in all the rela- 
tions of life, whether private or ])nb]ie, he was ecjually 
uii[)rincipled, profligate, false, immoral, vicious and 
corrupt; and from the example of his debauched and 
licentious Court, public morals contracted a taint which 
it required little less than a century to obliterate, and 
which for a time wholly paraly/ed the character of 
the nation. 

Charles II., was thirty years of age at the time of 
the Restoration, Being naturally of very engaging 
manners, and possessed of an open, affable dispo- 
siticm, he became a favorite with all classes of his 
subjects. His first measures were calculated to give 
general satisfaction, and he seemed desirous of oblit- 
erating the memory of past animosities, and of uniting 
every party in aifection for their prince and 
country. 



HOUSE OF STUART. 189 

An act of indemnity was passed, by wliicli all avIio 
Notable ^*'^*^^ been engaged in tlie late -svars were 

Events. pardoned, except sncli as had been immedi- 

ately engaged in procuring the death of Charles I. 
The bodies of Cromwell, Ireton, and Bradshaw were 
taken from their graves, hanged at Tyburn, and 
treated with the greatest indignity. 

In the summer of 1(305, a plague ravaged London, 
which destroyed upwards of 100,000 persons within a 
year; rows of houses became tenantless, few persons 
ventured out of doors, and the chief thoroughfares 
were overgrown Avith grass. Amidst the ravings of 
delirium and the wail of sorrow, were to be heard the 
awful sounds of debauchery and ribaldry in the man- 
sions and the taverns. In the following year (Sep- 
tember 3), occurred the great fire of London, which 
burned down about thirteen thousand houses, eighty- 
nine churches, and a great number of other public 
edifices. The ruins covered four hundred and thirty- 
six acres of ground, and the fire raged for several 
days and nights. The extreme dryness of the season, 
the high wind and the narrow streets, caused the spread 
of the flames which formed a column a mile in diame- 
ter, and seemed to mingle with the clouds. The night 
appeared as light as day for ten miles around the great 
city, and the reflection in the sky is said to have been 
witnessed hundreds of miles distant. The bigotry 
and ignorance of the population led them to believe 
that the fire had been caused by the Catholics, and a tall 
])illar, called the Monument, was erected near London 
bridge, as a memento, an inscription being en- 



190 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

graved upon it, ascribing the calamity to their work. 
There is now, however, no doubt, that the conflagra- 
tion was purely accidental. From a sanitary point of 
view, the fire was a blessing in disguise. It cleansed 
the city as only fire can, and put a stop to the ravages 
of the plague. It swept away miles of narrow streets 
crowded "with miserable l)uildings black with the 
encrusted filth of ages." Sir Christopher Wren was 
the architect under whom most of the city was rebuilt. 
It had been before of wood, ])ut it noAV arose of 
brick and stone. The old Gothic church of St. Paul 
was destroyed, but Wren, Avho lies buried beneath the 
dome, reared upon its ruins the present cathedral. 
The Koyal Exchange was destroyed, but was rebuilt 
in 1()89. 

Tlie stern Puritanism Aviiicli prevailed among the 
])eople during the Commonwealth and Protectorate, 
had given way to licentious rioting and drunken- 
ness (condemned alike by m11 systems of Christian 
faith), making the plague and fire seem as if they 
were judgments from the Almiglity, for the sins of 
king and people. 

Tlie Habeas Corpus Act, to prevent illegal im- 
prisonment, was passed in 1()79. A bill for the ex- 
clusion of James, Duke of York, from the throne, was 
passed by the Commons, but rejected by the Lords. 
The Eye House Plot, in 1()88, which liad for its 
object the murder of Charles and his brother James, 
Avas concocted in Hertfordshire, by a number of 
violent Whigs, disappointed at the failure of the 
exclusion act. It was discovered, and Algernon Sid- 



HOUSE OF STUART. 101 

ney and Lord Russell, avIio were suspected of having 
been connected with it, were executed on the charge, 
without proper legal evidence, in the same year. 

The Episcopal form of worship was restored, and 
severe laws passed against dissenters. The Corpora- 
tion Act ordered all holders of municipal offices to 
renounce the Covenant and receive the Eucharist, as 
administered by the National Church. Then came 
the Act of Uniformity, enforcing the use of the prayer- 
l)ook. Soon after a law was passed forbidding any 
public Avorship except in accordance with the estab- 
lished church. The Five-mile Act, forl)ade any dis- 
senter to teach within five miles of an incorporated 
town. Over 2,000 Presbyterian clergymen were re- 
duced to beggary by this act, as fine and imprison- 
ment followed resistance. The Covenanters in Scot- 
land were hunted like deer by Claverhouse and his 
men. There was no accusation, no trial. It was 
simply, " will you take the test of conformity to the 
Church of England and the government of Charles? " 
If this Avas refused, then came the order, "Make 
ready — present — -fire!" and there lay the body of the 
recusant. In February, 1073, the famous Test Act, 
requiring an oath of allegiance to the Church of 
England, was passed by Parliament. By this Act 
Catholics Avere excluded from any office either in 
Church or State. 

In 1007, the Dutch fleet threatened to blockade 
London and made their own terms on retiring. Soon 
after a most disgraceful act occurred. Charles, in 
consideration of £300,000, and the promise by Louis 



192 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

XIV. of France, to pay him £200,000 a year, for 
the maintenance of the fleet, agreed to aid in destroy- 
ing the political liberty and Protestant faith of 
Holland, and also, when convenient, to avow himself a 
Catholic. This is known as the secret treaty of Dover. 
Not knowing where to borrow the money to carry on 
war with Holland, he determined to seciu-e it by rob- 
bery, London merchants and bankers had loaned to 
the government large sums, and an amount equal to 
about $10,000,000 at present values, was on deposit 
at the exchequer to meet the regularly acknowledged 
demands of the realm. But the King deliberately 
appropriated the money and used it, partly for war 
purposes, and quite as much for gratifying his own 
vices. By this act of base fraud, a financial panic was 
caused, Avhich produced wide-spread disaster and ruin. 
On January 28, 1668, the celebrated treaty between 
the States-General, Holland, England and Sweden, 
against France, to protect the Spanish Netherlands, 
was signed. 

The Royal Society founded in 1631, was chartered 
in 1662. St James Park was ornamented and planted 
with trees. 

Theatres, which had been suppressed during the 
Commonwealth, were revived. January 3, 1661, a 
woman supposed to have been Peggy Hughes, was the 
first female who appeared as an actress on the English 
stage; female parts before that time having been taken 
by boys and men. A periodical paper, called the Pub- 
lic Intelligencer, was published by Sir R. L'Estrange, 
1663, and in 1664, the first number of the London 



HOUSE OF STUART. 193 

Gazette appeared. The London penny post, estab- 
lished by Mr. Murray in 1680, was afterward annexed 
to the revenue of the crown. Bombay was ceded to 
England in 1683. 

In 1678, an account of a supposed papist conspir- 
acy to burn London, massacre its people and restore 
Romanism, was started by Titus Gates, a vile and 
abandoned miscreant. Sir Edmundbury Godfrey, who 
first announced the plot, was found dead in one of the 
Hampstead fields. It is not known whether he com- 
mitted suicide, or was murdered by one of the Gates 
party. False charges, sustained by the perjury of 
Gates and his creatures, ultimately led to the execu- 
tion of numerous persons of all ranks, including the 
venerable Viscount Stafford, and spread distress and 
terror throughout the land. 

In recalling the lax state of morals which present 
such a sad and glaring picture in the personnel, both of 
Charles and his Court, we must not forget that at this 
period every Court in Europe was tainted in like man- 
ner, and that it was at foreign Courts Charles spent his 
exile, and he naturally became inoculated with their 
tastes and habits of life. The thin veneer of seem- 
ing decency and refinement which cloaked vice at the 
French Court, was even worse for the community than 
the open and ostentatious disregard of virtue dis- 
played at the English Court. 

It is not pleasing to be obliged to record the hu- 
miliating fact that so many of the "noble" families 
of England sprang from Charles' illegitimate chil- 
dren. The ducal house of Grafton springs from the 



1114 ENGLAND AND ITS KULERS. 

King's adultery Avitli Barbara Villiers, whom he 
created Duchess of Cleveland. The Dukes of St. 
Albans owe their origin to his intrigue with Nell 
Gwynn, a player and courtesan. Louise de Querouaille, 
a mistress sent from France to win him over to its in- 
terests, became Duchess of Portsmouth, and ances- 
tress of the house of Kichmond. An earlier mistress, 
Lucy Walters, was mother of a boy whom he raised to 
the Dukedom of Monmouth, and to whom the Dukes 
of Buccleuch trace their line; but there is good reason 
for doubting Avhethor tlie King Avas actually his fathoi-. 
The closing scene of Charles' life was a bit of dra- 
matic hypocrisy, and a fitting end to his career of 
dissimulation. His death occurred just as he had 
regained his old popularity, and at the news of his 
sickness crowds thronged the churches, praying that 
God would raise him up again, to be a father to his 
people. The anxiety of the King, however, was to be 
reconciled to the Roman Catholic Church. His 
chamber was cleared, and a priest named Huddleston, 
who had saved his life after the battle of AVorcester, 
received his confession and administered the last 
sacraments. Not a word, however, of this ceremony 
was whispered when the nobles and bishops were re- 
recalled into the royal presence. All the children of 
his mistresses, save Monmouth, Avere gathered round 
the bed, and he blessed each of them in turn. The 
bishops then begged him, as the father of the people, 
to bless his subjects in the person of those then 
prese)it, which he did. But his last dying utter- 
ance, as he sank into a fatal stupor, "Do not let 



HOUSE OF STUART. 195 

poor Nelly starve," was characteristic of the man; 
kind-hearted, generous, and at the same time vicious 
and dissolute. Under other influences he might have 
been a better man. 

With the Dutch, in 1064. Great naval victories off 
Solebay, June 3, 1G65; and at the mouth 

Wars. •' 

of the Thames, July 25, 1600. In the fol- 
lowing year the Dutch fleet, commanded by De Ruyter, 
entered the Medway on June 11th, took Sheerness, 
burned several ships of war, and afterwards sailed up 
the Thames, reaching Tilbury, June 10, 1(567, but 
was repulsed, as it also was at Portsmouth and 
Plymouth. Peace was, however, concluded in 1667, 
by the treaty of Breda, })y which New York, then 
called New Amsterdam, was ceded to the English. 
War with Holland, in conjunction with France, 1672, 
Peace made with Holland 1671. The battle of South- 
wold Bay, Suffolk, took place May 28, 1672. A gen- 
eral peace was declared in 1678. 

The Covenanters of Scotland, took up arms and 
put to death Archbishop Sliarpe, May 3, 1679; but 
were defeated at the battle of Both well Bridge, June 
22, 1679. 

George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham, profligate and 
Noted wit, 1627-1688; Wilmot, Earl of Rochester, 

Persons. *1618-168(); Lord William Russell, *1639 
or 41-1683; Samuel Pepys, diarist and secretary to 
the admiralty, 1632-1703; John Evelyn, diarist, 1620- 
1705; Algernon Sidney, patriot, *1620-1683; Sir AVill- 
iam Temple, statesman, 1628-1700*; Bishop Jeremy 
Taylor, 1613-1667; Henry Jenkins died in this reign 



ion ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

aged 169 years; Dr. Isaac Barrow, prelate and geo- 
metrician, 1630-1680; Sir Christopher Wren, 1632- 
1723; Samuel Butler, prelate and classical scholar, 
*1612-1680; John Dryden, poet, 1631-1701; Edward 
Hyde, Earl of Clarendon, statesman. Lord Chancellor 
and historian, 1608-1674; John Maitland, Duke of 
Lauderdale, statesman, 1616-1682; Lord Ashley, 
1621-1683; Henry Bennet, Earl of Arlington, 1618- 
1685 ; and Thomas Lord Clifford, 1630-1673. Thomas 
Osborne, Duke of Leeds, statesman, 1631-1712; 
James Butler, Duke of Ormond, general, commander- 
in-chief in Ireland, and statesman, 1610-1688; George 
Saville, Earl (afterwards Marquis) of Halifax, 1630- 
1695*. Cabinet or Privy Councils, composed of 
chosen friends of the King, had been instituted by 
Alfred the Great, in 896, and they had been called 
even as early as 690, under the King of the West 
Saxons, and other of the Heptarchy Kings. The 
modern cabinet council, however, was reconstructed 
by Cliarles in 1670. The following were ministers 
and members of the Cabinet of Charles IT. : In 1660, 
Edward Hyde, Earl of Clarendon; in 1667, Dukes of 
Buckingham and Lauderdale. Same year a new 
ministry composed of Lords Ashley and Arlington, 
and Sir Thomas (afterwards Lord) Clifford, known 
in 1670 as the Cabal ministry; in 1673, Lords Arl- 
ington and Ashley (afterwards created Earl of 
Shaftesbury), and Sir Thomas Osborne (afterwards 
Earl of Danby) ; in 1671, Earl of Danby; in 1677, 
Earl of Essex, Duke of Ormond, Earl (afterward 
Marquis) of Halifax, and Sir William Temple; in 
1682, Duke of York and his friends. 



HOUSE OF STUART. 197 

(48) JAMES II., 
1685 — 1688. 

Birth and "^^ ^^^ boi'ii ill Edinburgh Castle, Oc- 

Parentage. tobei' 14, 1633, aiicl was the second son of 
Charles I. 
Accession to "^^ ^^^ crowiied at Westminster, April 

the Throne. 23, 1685. 

He was twice married; first in September, 1660, 
to Anne, daughter of Edward Hyde, Earl 

Marriage. ^ _ _ ^ ^ ' 

of Clarendon, avIio died in 1671; afterAvards, 
November 21, 1673, to Mary Beatrice d'Este, daughter 
of the Duke of Modena. 

By his first wife, Mary, Anne and six other chil- 
dren. By his second, he had James 
Francis Edward, the Pretender, also five 
others who died in infancy. The daughters were edu- 
cated as Protestants, the sons as Romanists. 

After a tedious illness, amidst much austerity and 
devotion, he died in exile at St. Germains, 

Death. \ ^ ' 

near Paris, September 16, 1701, and was 
buried there in the church of the English Benedictines. 
His wife Mary, who had followed him into exile, also 
died at St. Germains, in 1718. 

He was a little over medium height, broad shoul- 
dered, and of a fair figure, with a pleasant 
pearanceand face. Ill character he was a thorough 
despot, careless of the rights of the people, 
and with a bigotry which he took no pains to dis- 
guise. Regardless of the laws of the realm, he bent 
them to his own personal interests, and made the 



198 ENGLAND AND ITS HITLERS, 

rights of his subjects subordinate to his will. His 
obstinate urging of Catholic claims was not only 
offensive to the people, but deplored even by the 
Roman Catholics themselves. 

James began his reign by an ostentatious recogni- 
Notabie tiou of the rights of the Roman Catholic 

Events. Church. He went openly, and with all the 

insignia of his kingly dignity to mass, an illegal act, 
and published a declaration dispensing with oaths of 
allegiance and supremacy, thereby admitting all relig- 
ious sects to civil and military offices. This oath 
was originally adopted to check the power of the 
papacy, and his disregard of it, produced great dis- 
content. In 168(8 he commanded the clergy through- 
out the realm, to read the declaration from their 
pulpits. The Archbishop of Canterbury, and six Pro- 
testant bishops, Avere sent to the Tower for respectfully 
asking the King to excuse their compliance with the 
order. They were tried, however, and acquitted. The 
result was welcomed in London by bonfires and gen- 
eral rejoicing. 

In 1687, James re-established the Court of Hiefli 
Commission. 

So great was the excitement and alarm occasioned 
by the King's conduct, as well as by the report that a 
son had been born to him, who would be likely to 
become a Roman Catholic, that some of the nobles 
invited William, Prince of Orange, Stadtholder of 
Holland, to accept the crown. He landed with an 
army in Devonshire, November 5, 1688, avowing his 
desire to preserve the liberties of the people and the 



HOUSE OF STUART. 109 

Protestant religion. Tlie mother of the Prince was 
Mary Stuart, sister of James II., and daughter of 
Charles I. Prince William had married Mary, James' 
eldest daughter, and thus was both nephew and son- 
in-law of the King, 

James, finding himself deserted by his friends, his 
army and even his children, fled in consternation to 
Feversham, but was brought back with some tokens 
of popular sympathy. He, however, soon saw that he 
had hopelessly alienated the hearts of his people, 
and again quietly fled. Aided by the friends of Will- 
iam, who were glad to have him go, he easily gained 
the Court of Louis XIV. 

Both houses of Parliament now declared that 
James, having endeavored to subvert the Protestant 
constitution, had rendered the throne vacant; they 
passed a vote of thanks to the Prince of Orauge, and 
settled the crown on him jointly with Mary, his wife, 
and in the event of their dying witliout issue, on 
Anne, Princess of Denmark, daughter of James. 
In this both the Whigs and the Tories concurred. 
William and Mary signed a declaration defining their 
prerogative, and recognizing the rights of Parliament 
and the people. Thus was consummated the revolution 
of 1688. "Never," says a great historian, "was a 
revolution of such magnitude and meaning, accom- 
plished so peacefully. Not a drop of blood had 
been shed. There was hardly any excitement or up- 
roar. Even the bronze statue of the runaway King 
was permitted to stand undisturbed in the rear of the 
palace at Whitehall, where it remains to this day." 



200 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS, 

Archibald, Earl of Argyle, joined in Monmouth's 

rebellion, but paid for his temerity with the 
Wars. ^ ^ •' 

loss of his head in 1085. James, Duke of 

Monmouth, a natural son of Charles II., landed with a 
force at Lyme, in Dorsetshire, June 11, 1(385, and 
asserted his right to the crown. He was defeated at 
Sedgemoor, in Somersetshire, by a force under Fever- 
sham, July 0, 1085. His adherents v.-ere punished 
witli dreadful severity, and about two hundred and 
fifty were, under guise of law, executed by Judge 
JefPreys, who then commenced his notorious career of 
inhuman cruelty. To illustrate his character, we read 
that at Ills suggestion Col. Kirk, his assistant judge, 
caused thirty prisoners, who had been condemned with 
hardly the semblance of a trial, to be hanged in sight 
of himself and officers; ten after drinking a health 
to the King, ten witli a health to the Queen, and ten 
with a health to Jeffreys. 

Charles Cotton (friend of Isaac AValton) 1030- 
Noted 1()87; James, Duke of Monmouth, natural 

Persons. g^j^ ^£ Charlcs 11., 1049, executed 1085; 
John Bunyan, sectary and author, 1028-1088; Will- 
iam Wycherley, dramatist, 1040 -'ITLj; Kichard 
Baxter, non-conformist divine, 1015-1091; Andrew 
Marvel, political writer and satirist, 1020 - 1078 ; 
Stillingfleet, Bishop of Worcester in 1089, 1035- 
1099; John Tillotson, Archbishop of Canterbury in 
1091, 1030-1094; Dr. Ealph Cudwortli, philosopher, 
1017-1088; Alexander Burnet, Scotch prelate, 1014- 
1084; Thomas Otway, Bishop of Kellaloe and Achony, 
1070, Ossory, 1079, "^1015-1092; Lord George Jeffreys 



HOUSE OF STUART. 201 

(the infamous judge) Lord Chancellor, 1640-1689; 
Archibald Campbell, Earl of Argyle, rebel, born 1598, 
executed 1661; Eobert Spencer, Earl of Sunderland, 
statesman, 1641-1702; Kichard Talbot, Duke of Tyr- 
counel, died 1691. 

The following were ministers and advisers of James 
II. : In 1685, Earls of Sunderland and Tyrconnel, and 
Sir George (afterwards Lord) Jeifreys; in 1687, Lord 
Jeffreys, Earl Tyrconnel, Lords Bellasis and Arundel, 
Earl of Middleton, and Viscount Preston. 



(49) WILLIAM III., AND MARY II. 

1689 — 1702. 

William was born at the Hague, in Holland, No- 
Birth and vember 4, 1650, and was the posthumous 
Parentage, g^^ ^^£ ^ViHiam, Priucc of Orange, by Mary, 
eldest daughter of Charles I. 

Queen Mary was born April 30, 1662, and was the 
daughter of James II. 

Accession to William and Mary were crowned at 

the Throne. Westminster, April 11, 16)89. 

They were married November 4, 1677, 

Marriage. '' 

but there was no issue. 
AVilliam was thrown from his horse while riding to 
Hampton Court, and his collar-bone was so 

Death. ^ • i i .i 

severely fractured, that he expired shortly 
afterwards at Kensington, March 8, 1702. He was 
buried at Westminster, Mary died of the small-pox, 
December 28, 1694. 

" He was weak and sickly from infancy, and man- 



202 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

hood Ijrouglit with it an asthma and consumption 
, . -which shook his frame ^vith a constant 

Personal Ap- 
pearance and couf^h ; his face was grave and bloodless, 

and scored with deep lines which told of 
ceaseless pain." Of commanding temper, his courage 
was dauntless, and his political ability of the highest 
order. Nature had made him both a statesman and a 
soldier; of letters or of art he knew nothing, but his 
diplomacy and his military skill challenged the admi- 
ration even of his enemies. " Do you not see your 
country is lost?" said Buckingham to him, Avheu he 
was called to the head of the Republic. " There is a 
sure way never to see it lost," replied AVilliam, " and 
that is to die in the last ditch." His coolness in the 
midst of danger was often noted. " A strange light 
flaslKHl from his eyes, as soon as he was under fire; 
and ill tlie terror and confusion of defeat, his manners 
took an ease and gaiety that charmed every heart." 
His tolerance, too, and labors for absolute freedom in 
religious opinions and worship, distinguished him as a 
ruler in advance of his age. His desire for peace and 
aversion to persecution, were qualities as admirable as 
they w^ere rare. 

AVilliam had long refused invitations to assume 
Notable the crowu of England, but upon the birth 

Events. (June 10, 1()8S) of a son to James, which 

event caused the nation to fear a papal succession to 
the throne, was so unanimously urged by the repre- 
sentatives of all the great parties to become king, that 
he could no longer refuse. James was deserted by 
his army, by the peerage, the gentry, and even by the 
most devout Catholics. 



HOUSE OF STUART. 203 

When AVilliam landed, November 5, 1()88, in Tor- 
bay, all England welcomed him with warmest greet- 
ings, and cries for a free Parliament and the Pro- 
testant religion. King James, thus left alone, cried 
out, " God help me, for my own children have 
forsaken me." His spirit was utterly broken, and he 
soiifjht refujje in France Avitli his wife and child. 

It was agreed that William and Mary should be 
acknowledged as joint sovereigns, but that the actual 
administration should rest upon William alone. A 
Parliamentary committee presented to them a declara- 
tion of rights, FoV)ruary 13, 1689. It first condemned, 
as illegal, the establishment by James of an ecclesias- 
tical commission, and his raising an army without 
Parliamentary sanction; second, it denied the right 
of any king to suspend or dispense with laws, or to 
exact money save by consent of Parliament; third, it 
asserted for the subject a right to petition, to a free 
choice of representatives in Parliament, and to a pure 
and merciful administration of justice; and declared 
the right of both houses to liberty of debate; fourth, 
it demanded securities for the full exercise of their 
religion by all Protestants, and bound the new sove- 
reigns to maintain the Protestant religion, and the 
laws and liberties of the realm; and it ended with 
declaring the Prince and Princess of Orange, King 
and Queen of England. William, in a few graceful 
words, accepted the trust, and promised to maintain 
the laws and govern by the advice of Parliament. 

At the accession of William and Mary, the extreme 
tories who believed the action in calling them to the 



204 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

throne unconstitutional, continued to adliere to James 
II. They Avere numerous in Ireland and in Scotland, 
and from the name Jacohus (Latin for James), were 
called Jacobites. Many of the clergy, too, including 
the Archbishop of Canterbury, with members of the 
universities, refused to take the oath of allegiance to 
the new sovereigns, and hence were called non- jurors. 
These last were of course compelled to resign their 
positions, but were never harshly treated. This was 
but one incident of William's Avise government. 

In 1(589, chiefly through the influence of the King, 
was passed a toleration act, which practically insured 
freedom of worship except to " ])apists and such as 
d^ny the Trinity." The same Parliament also passed 
the famous Bill of Rights which terminated the doc- 
trine of the Divine Right of Kings. Its chief provi- 
sions were: 1. That in time of peace no standing 
army should be maintained save by consent of Parlia- 
ment. 2. That without such consent, no money should 
be taken from tho people. 3. The right of petition. 
4. That the elections to Parliament should be free 
from interference. 5. Frequent parliaments and en- 
tire freedom of debate. (I That the Kinjj should not 
interfere with tlie execution of the laws. 7. That no 
Roman Catholic, or one married to a Roman Catholic, 
should thereafter receive the crown of England. By 
this Bill was established for the first time since the 
first Tudor, the right of the people to depose the 
King, to change the order of succession, and to place 
upon the throne wliom soever they would. From that 
time, the English monarch has been as much a crea- 



HOUSE OF STUART. 205 

ture of an act of Parliament, as the pettiest tax- 
gatherer. 

Early in 1690, William dissolved the Parliament, 
and called a new one to meet in March of that year. 
The election showed that the people were thoroughly 
in accord Avith his views, and they returned men anx- 
ious to preserve harmony and the peace of the nation. 

King James, in 1089, returning from France, Avas 
declared King in Dublin, and his troops gained 
such advantages over the raw recruits commanded by 
Schomberg, that William was compelled to take the 
field in person. At the battle of the Boyne, William 
utterly routed the Irish and French forces, afterwards 
taking Dublin, James being compelled to embark for 
France; but winter coming on, the war was not ter- 
minated until the next year. By the treaty known as 
the Pacification of Limerick, the Koman Catholics were 
assured of their right to the free exercise of their 
religion. SarsfieUl, the brave leader of the insurgents 
with 10,000 men, the Avliole of his force, chose exile, 
and leaving their wailing wives and children, sought 
refuse in France. " Then the silence of death settled 

r? 

down upon Ireland. For a hundred years the coun- 
try remained at peace, but the peace was a peace of 
despair." The tyranny of Tyrconnel, Lord Deputy of 
Ireland, " made them heavers of Avood and draAvers 
of water." 

The AvithdraAval of the English force under Will- 
iam, to quell the rebellion in Ireland, induced Louis 
XIV. to send a French fleet, imder Tourville, to co- 
operate with the Jacobites. Through the treachery 



206 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

of Herbert, who commanded the English fleet, they 
gained temporary mastery of the Channel ; but no 
sooner had they landed at Teignmonth and burned the 
town, than harmony Avas restored in England, and the 
nation, as one man, arose in arms to drive back the 
invaders. 

In the beginning of 1002, another French invasion 
was attempted. Thirty thousand troops were (quar- 
tered in Normandy, for a descent on the English coast, 
and Toarville was ordered to cover it with the French 
fleet at Brest. It resulted, however, only in disaster. 
The French fleet was completely defeated, many of 
their ships burned, and the entire effort rendered 
futile. The battle of La Hogue, as it is known in 
history, off the heights of Harfleur, ended the naval 
su|)eriority of France. 

In 1()93, originated the present plan of forming a 
ministry from the leaders of the prevailing ])arty in 
Parliament, which tended to give harmony of view, 
union, and consequent strength to the administration. 

In 1694, the national debt was incfeased by a loan 
to government of £1,200,000 by public subscription. 
The whole amount was raised in ten days, and from 
this originated the Bank of England. In 1784, Avas 
erected in one of its courts a statue of William, with 
the inscription: "To the memory of the best of 
Princes, William of Orange, founder of the Bank of 
England." 

In 1604 Queen Mary died. Her career was pecu- 
liarly a domestic one, leaving no trace on the life of 
England, and little to interest the historian. It may, 



HOUSE OF STUART. 207 

notwithstanding, have been more useful than that 
of many who occupy a more ostentatious phice in the 
country's records. 

In 1697, the peace of Ryswick ended tlie Thirty 
Years' War. By the treaty, Louis agreed to abandon 
the Stuart cause, and to recognize William as King of 
Eiijjfland. It was the final and decisive defeat of the 
conspiracy to turn England into a Roman Catholic 
country, and into a dependency of France. 

In 1098, the first treaty of partition between 
France, England, and the Em{)ire of Germany, for the 
division of the Spanish dominions Avas signed. 

In September, 1701, the treaty of 1()97 was broken 
by Louis when he entered the bedchamber where 
James II. was breathing his last, and promised to 
acknowledge his son at his death, as King of Eng- 
land, Scotland and L-eland. This was, in fact, a decla- 
ration of war, and was so regarded by Parliament, who, 
at William's earnest request, voted to raise 40,000 
soldiers and as many sailors for the expected struggle. 
The King's weakness was already too great to allow of 
his taking the field, and the managfMueiit of the cam- 
paign was entrusted to John Charchill, Earl of Marl- 
borough, then fifty-one years of age, who at that time 
began his brilliant military career. The war, however, 
had hardly commenced, when the King died. 

In 1099, Peter the Great paid his memorable visit 
to England. 

The malt tax and hawker's license were first im- 
posed during this reign. Triennial parliaments were 
instituted, and the first public lottei-y drawn. Chelsea 



208 ENGLAND AND iTS RULERS. 

Hospital was founded. In 1094, the Eoyal Palace of 
Greenwich was converted into a hospital for aged and 
disabled seamen. It has a revenue of £130,000 per 
annum, and at present affords support to nearly 7,000 
sailors. 

James II., assisted by Louis XIV. of France, 
atteiantod to regain his crown, and landinof 

Wars. . ° 

in Ireland, made a public entry into Dublin 
in March, 1()89. He was supported by the Roman 
Catholics of that country, who, led by Tyrconnel, 
warmly espoused his cause. William sent the Duke 
of Schomberg with an army to oppose him, and after- 
wards went himself. Landing at Carrickfergus, he 
defeated James at the battle of the Boyne, July 1, 
1()90, and in lt)9L, on the surrender of Limerick, the 
insurrection in Ireland was utterly suppressed. 

The English, aided by the Diitcli, gained a victory 
over the French at La Hogue, May 19, 1092, The 
war with France was continued with little success on 
either side until the peace of Ryswick, in 1097, 
finally assured permanence to William's sovereignty. 

In 1700, a British fleet was sent to assist Charles 
XIE. of Sweden. In 1701, the war of the Spanish suc- 
cession began. In 1702, Marlborough defeated the 
French in Holland. 

Daniel Defoe, author of " Robinson Crusoe," *1003- 
Noted 1731; John Locke, theologian, 1032-1704; 

Persons. g-^. j_^^^^ Newton, 1042-1727, and Sir R. 
Boyle, 1020-1091, eminent philosophers; Matthew 
Henry, Welsh Nonconformist divine, 1002-1714; John 
Flamstead, the first astronomer royal, 1040-1719; Elias 



HOUSE OF STUART. 209 

Ashmole, founder of Aslimole Museum at Oxford, 1017- 
1692 ; John Aubrey, antiquarian, 1626-1097 ; John Ben- 
bow, admiral, *1050-1702; Edward Bernard, savant 
and astronomer, 1038-1097; John Bernardi, military 
officer and adherent of James IT., died 1730; Anthony 
Ashley Cooper, Earl of Shaftesbury, politician, 1071- 
1713; John Dryden, poet, 1031-1710; John Dryden 
(sou of poet) author, 1067-1701; John Evelyn, 
scholar, 1054-1099; Sir Geoi-ge Hutchins, Keeper of 
Great Seal in 1090, died 1705 ; John Moxson, liydro- 
grapher to Charles II., 1027-1700; Lord John Somers, 
Lord Chancellor 1097, 1650-1716; Sidney, Earl of 
Godolphin, Lord High Treasurer, 1630-1712; Charles 
Montagu, Earl of Halifax, 1001-1715; Eobert Har- 
ley. Earl of Oxford, 1()()1-172-1:. 

The following were ministers to William III., and 
Mary II.: In 1688, Sir John (afterwards Lord) 
Somers, Lord Godolphin, Earl of Danby; in 1694, 
Russell (afterwards Earl of Orford), Lord High Ad- 
miral; Somers, Lord Keeper; Shrewsbury, Secretary 
of State; and Montague, Chancellor of the Exchequer; 
in 1695, The Earl of Sunderland, and others, in 10)97, 
Charles Montagu, later Earl of Halifax, Earls of 
Pembroke and Oxford, and Viscount Lonsdale. 



210 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 



(50) ANNE. 
1702 — 1714. 

She was born in St. James Palace, February 0, 
Birth ami 1<)()5, and was the second daugliter of 

Parentage. j^^^^^^ ^ ^^^ ^^^^^^ jj^j^^ 

She was crowned at AVestminster, April 23, 1702, 
Accession to and reigned until 1714. By the act of suc- 
the Throne, cession, she ascended the throne instead of 
James Francis Edward, son of James II., who was a 
Koman Catholic. 

She espoused George, Prince of Denmark, second 
son of Frederick III, July 28, 1083. He 

MarriaRO. . 

was not alloAved to assume the title of Kintj:, 
but was styled, " His Highness, Prince George." He 
was born at Copenhagen April 21, 1053; died of an 
asthma at Kensington October 28, 1708, and was 
buried at Westminster. 

Seventeen children. Prince George died July 23, 

1700, aged eleven years, and the others in 

Issue. " ^ ' 

infancy. 
^ , After a short illness she died at Kensing:- 

Death. ^ ^ 

ton, August 1, 1714, and was buried at 
Westminster. 

This Princess was remarkable neither for learning 
nor capacity. Like all the rest of her family. 

Personal Ap- l ./ „ ■ 

p(uiranco and she Seemed rather fitted for the duties of 
private life than those of a public station, 
being a pattern of conjugal fidelity, a good mother, a 
warm friend and an indulgent mistress; and it may 
be recorded, that during her reign no one suffered for 



HOUSE OF STUART. 211 

treason on the scaffold. In her ended the line of 
the Stuarts, a family Avho neither rewarded their 
friends nor punished their enemies, and whose mis- 
conduct and misfortune are scarcely to be paralleled 
in history. 

Anne was fortunate in the choice of her ministers 
and generals, and the successes achieved while she 
was sovereign, raised the military reputation of Great 
Britain under the Duke of Marlborough, to the sum- 
mit of renown. 

The most remarkable transaction of this reign, was 
Notable the uniou of the two kingdoms, Scotland 
Events. .^^^j England. Though governed by one 

sovereign since the time of James I., of England, yet 
each nation had continued to be represented by its 
own parliament, and not seldom professed to jmrsue 
interests opposed to those of its neighbor. The union 
had often been unsuccessfully attempted before, and had 
indeed been the cause of bloody wars in the times of 
Edward I. and Edward III. of England. In all the 
former proposals on that head, both nations were sup- 
posed to remain free and independent; each kingdom 
having its oAvn parliament, and being subject only to 
such taxes and other commercial regulations as it 
deemed expedient for the benefit of the respective 
states. But after the destruction of the Darien colony, 
King William had endeavored to allay the national 
ferment by renewing the project of a union with as 
much assiduity as his warlike occupations would allow. 
It was proposed to form a federal union, somewhat 
like that of the States of Holland. AVith this view 



212 ENGLAND AND ITS RULEES. 

the Scots were prevailed on to send twenty commis- 
sioners to London, who, Avith twenty-three on the part 
of England, assembled at Whitehall, in the month of 
October, 1702. Here they were honored by a visit 
from the Queen, in order to stimulate them to a more 
speedy dispatch of business; l)ut the treaty was en- 
tirely broken off at this time by the demand of the 
Scottish commissioners, that the rights and privileges 
of their countrymen trading to Africa and the Indies, 
should be preserved and maintained intact. The 
negotiation was, however, resumed in the year 170(), 
when, on the l()th of April, the commissioners on 
behalf of the two countries again assembled in the 
council chamber of AVhitehall. The Scottish commis- 
sioners still proposed a federal union; but the English 
were determined on an incorporation, which should 
not afterwards be dissolved by a Scottish parliament. 
Nothing but this, they said, could settle a perfect and 
lasting friendship between the two nations. The com- 
missioners from Scotland continued to resist the article 
which subjected their country to the customs, excises, 
and regulations of trade which existed in England; 
but the (^iK^en being persuaded to pay two visits in 
person to the commissioners, exerted herself so vigor- 
ously, that a majority was at last gained over, and a 
uni(m was agreed on, the Scotch Commissioner Lock- 
hart of Carnwath, alone refusing either to sign or 
seal the treaty. 

The articles being fully prepared, were presented 
to her Majesty on the 28d of July, by the Lord-keeper, 
in the name of the English commissioners; and at the 



BOUSE OF STUART. 21B 

same time a sealed copy of the instrument was deliv- 
ered by the Lord Chancellor of Scotland. The arti- 
cles Avere most graciously received, and the same day 
the Queen dictated an order of council, threatening 
with prosecution such as should be concerned in any 
discourse or libel, or in laying wagers, with regard to 
the union. 

The union was finally etfectod as from May 1, 1707, 
it beinjj agreed that the Scots should retain tlieir 
ancient jurisdiction in the courts of law, and be rep- 
resented in the British Parliament by sixteen peers in 
the House of Lords, and forty-five members in the 
House of Commons. 

Rev. Dr. Sacheverel was impeached for delivering 
sermons having a seditious tendency; and after a trial 
which continued three weeks, he was found guilty, 
prohibited from preaching for three years, and his 
sermons were burnt. The people, however, were so 
much in his favor, that it was impossible to carry the 
entire sentence into effect. 

In 1711, the English people became tired of war 
and its expenses. The Duke of Marlborougli, return- 
ing from Fhnnders, Avas accused of receiving a bribe 
from a Jew, avIio liad contracted to supply the army 
with bread. Though bribery was common in those 
days, he fell into disgrace, and was dismissed from 
his offices, still retaining, however, the mansion and 
estates of Blenheim, near Woodstock, presented to 
him by the nation in acknowledgment of his great 
military services. 

A most violent storm occurred in 1703, in which 



214 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS 

were lost thirteen ships of war and fifteen liandred 
seamen. Eddystone lighthouse was also destroyed, 
and with it Winstanley, its ingenious contriver, per- 
ished. Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovel, with his fleet, 
was wrecked on the Scilly Isles in 1707. The British 
Parliament now included sixteen Scotch peers, and 
sixty members returned by Scotland. St. Paul's 
Cathedral was finished, Sir Christopher Wren having 
been thirty-seven years building it, at the expense of 
nearly a million sterling. Steam engines and paper- 
mills were invented, and promissory notes and news- 
paper stamps introduced. The first daily newspaper, 
a dingy, badly printed little sheet, called the "Daily 
Courant," about 4 inches by 7 in size, was printed in 
London in this reign. 

Ill order to restore the balance of power in Eur<)[)e, 

by taking from Louis XI Y. the Spanish 
Wars. ... . . 

dominions, M'hicli he had seized from his 

grandson Philip, Duke of Anjou, war was declared. 
Its chief cause, however, was the fact that Louis sup- 
ported the claims of the son of James II., to the 
English throne. 

Victory at Vigo, in Galicia, Spain, October 12, 
1702. 

Battle of Blenheim, Germany, August 13, 1704. 

Siege and capture of Gibraltar, August 3, 1704. 

Battle of Kamilies, Netherlands, May 23, 1700. 
After which Louis made overtures for peace. 

Battle of Almanza, Portugal, April 25, 1707, in 
which the Anglo-Portuguese army was defeated. 

Battle of Oudenarde, Netherlands, July 11, 1708. 



HOUSE OF STUART. 215 

Battle of Malplaquet, Netherlands, September 11, 
1709. 

Battle of Saragossa, Spain, August 20, 1710. 

Battle of Denain, France, July 24, 1712. 

Peace was at length obtained by the treaty of 
Utrecht, in which the Protestant succession was recog- 
nized by France, April 11, 1713. 

John Churchill, first Duke of Marlborough, 1G50- 
Noted 1722, a renowned general — it has been said 

Persons. ^£ j-^jj^^ a ^^^^^ j^g never besieged a town 

which he did not take, nor fought a battle in which he 
did not conquer;" Charles Mordaunt, Earl of Peter- 
borough, general and statesman, 1658-1735; Robert 
Harley, Earl of Oxford, 1661-1724; Sir George 
Eooke, admiral, who captured Gibraltar, 1650-1709; 
Sir Cloudesley Shovel, admiral, 1650-1707 ; Sir Chris- 
topher Wren, 1632-1723; Mattliew Prior, poet, 1664- 
1721; Joseph Addison, essayist. 1672-1719; Alexander 
Pope, poet, 1688-1744; Richard Steele, political essay- 
ist, 1()71-1729; Jonathan Swift, Dean of St. Patrick 
and litterateur, 1667-1745 ; John Ray, or Wray, nat- 
uralist, 1628-1704; Thomas Rowe, litterateur, 1687- 
1715; Allan Ramsay, poet, 1685-1758; George Far- 
quhar, 1678-1707; Colley Cibber, 1671-1757, William 
Congreve, 1670-1729, dramatists; Dr. Thomas Sher- 
lock, Bishop of Bangor, 1678-1761 ; Lewis Atterbury, 
divine and lawyer, 1656-1731. 

The following were ministers and advisers of 
Queen Anne: In 1702, Lord Godolphin, Robert Har- 
ley, Earl of Oxford, Earl of Pembroke; 1706, Dukes 
of Buckingham and Marlborough; 1707, Lords Go- 



'210 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS, 

dolpliiii and CoAvper, and the Dukes of Marlborough 
and Newcastle; 1710, Eobert Harley, Earl of Oxford; 
1713, Earl of Rochester, Lord ])ai-tuiouth and Henry 
St. John, afterward Viscount Bolingl)roke and Har- 
court; 1711, Charles, Duke of Shrewsbury. 



HISTORICAL MEMORANDA CONNECTED WITH THE 
HOUSE OF STUART. 

The original name of the family was Alan, but they 
assumed that of Steward, from the dignity of High 
Steward of Scotlaiid, possessed by them. Walter, the 
sixth steward, married the sister and heiress of David 
II., the reigning king of Scotland, at whose death 
his nephew, the son of Walter, ascended the throne as 
Robert II. 

The misfortunes of this house, notwithstanding the 
follies and weaknesses of many members of it, must 
always challenge our pity. Robert III., son of Robert 
II., died of a broken heart, induced by the captivity 
of his son, detained by Henry lY., of England. 

James I., for manj^ years detained a prisoner in 
England, was finally assassinated by his subjects. 

James II. was killed by an accidental bursting of 
a cannon at the siege of Roxburg. 

James III. was imprisoned by his subjects, and 
afterwards slain in civil war, 1488. 

James IV. was killed at Flodden field, 1513, 

James V. died of a broken heart, 1542. 

Queen Mary was beheaded by Elizabeth. 

A11 of tliese were Scottish monarchs, from whom 
the Stuart line was derived. 



HOUSE OF STUART. 217 

Charles I. was sold by his Scottish countrymen, to 
perish at last on the scaffold. 

James II. was driven from his kingdom, and died 
in exile. 

Prince James, the old Pretender, brought many 
friends to death, in his efforts to secure the throne. 
Charles Edward, his son, the young Pretender, after 
enduring almost incredible misfortunes, died in Flor- 
ence in 1780. 

Science during this period, d(^s[)ite the adverse in- 
fluence of the times, made considerable progress. Sir 
Isaac Newton and Locke, Kepler and Lord Napier, 
made discoveries in astronomical and other sciences, 
which laid broad and deep the foundations of scien- 
tific knowledge, as it exists to-day. The invention of 
the telescope, in the early part of the seventeenth cen- 
tury, and its application by Galileo, led to the dis- 
covery of the satellites of the larger planets. 

Inigo Jones, Sir Christopher Wren and Vanbrugh, 
famous as architects, gave to England many of its 
most beautiful structures. AVren prepared the plan 
of St. Paul's, and other famous buildings in London. 
Inigo Jones was the royal architect, who enjoyed the 
friendship and patronage of Charles I., and who was 
the designer of the scenes used in presenting, for 
the diversion of James I. and his queen, the famous 
" Masques " composed by Ben Jonson. Vanbrugh 
was the architect of Blenheim, and of other palatial 
residences in various parts of England. 

Literature revived during the reign of Queen Anne. 
Addison gave to the world his Spectator, which still 



218 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS, 

gives pleasure to cultured readers. It was pub- 
lished on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, on 
Avhich days only, the post left Loudon. Eiehard Steele 
was a valued contributor to it. Swift and Pope, also, 
were among the illustrious writers of the time; the 
former distinguished for his powerful prose, and the 
latter as the founder of a new school of poetry, full of 
strouij thoui^ht, keen Avit and mature wisdom. 

The East India Company, having received a patent 
from James I., increased their capital stock to a mill- 
ion and a half sterlinjj, and in 1G09, built the larcrest 
merchant ship (of twelve hundred tons burden) Eng- 
land had then known. Bat she was too large for the 
seamanship of that day. and soon perished by shipwreck. 

The poj)ulation of England at this time was a little 
over five millions, of whom one tenth were inhabitants 
of London. In the Scottish Highlands, the people 
were as savage and barbarous as the early Britons, 
and life and property were wholly insecure. The 
annual revenue of the crown was about £1,000,000, 

The regular army consisted of about seven thou- 
sand foot and seventeen hundred cavalry and dragoons, 
supported at an annual expense of not far from 
£300.000, 

The navy was reduced, through the corruption with 
which its affairs were administered, to a state of shame- 
ful weakness and inefficiency. 

Agriculture was at a low ebb, conducted in an 
unskilled manner, while the breed of horses and 
cattle produced in England, was far inferior to those 
on the Continent, 



HOUSE OF STUART. 219 

Coal was mined in large quantities; three hundred 
and fifty thousand tons being consumed annually in 
London alone. 

The rural population of England, including squires 
and lords of manors, were low, coarse, unlearned, and 
more lacking in culture and refinement than the com- 
mon farmer of to-day. The enormous consumption 
of strong beer, the ordinary beverage of that day, 
tended to degrade the national character. Neverthe- 
less, pride of family, the manly exercise with which 
they strengthened sturdy frames, and their soldierly 
acquirements retained for the people some measure of 
respect. 

The clergy of England, especially in the rural 
parishes, were ill-paid, obliged to support themselves 
often by menial labor, and, although well educated, 
almost on a par with small farmers and upper servants ; 
glad to get a position in the household of some 
wealthy gentleman, for money enough to clothe them, 
while they ate with inferiors at his table. Of course 
there were exceptions in London and the cathedral 
towns, where men eminent for learninor, wieldino- a 
great influence for good, were well provided for. 

Books were scarce. There was no circulatino- 
library or book society, even in Loudon. Publications 
of all kinds commanded a large price. Ignorance in 
the lower and middle classes prevailed throughout the 
land. The licentiousness of the time tended not onlv 
to the illiteracy, but to the degradation of women. The 
standard of learning, even at Cambridge and Oxford, 
was very low. What school boys can now do, was 



220 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

beyond the attainment of many divines of the uni- 
versity. French was studied more than Latin and 
Greek. 

In the year 1660, the lloyal Society was incorpo- 
rated, and gave a great impulse to scientific study. As 
a result the first barometers ever constructed in Lon- 
don, were produced soon after. Chemistry began to 
receive much attention, and Prince Rupert of Bavaria, 
a Avarrior, [)liilosoplier and chemist, invented mezzo- 
tints, and th(i curious bubble called by Jiis name. 
Sanitary laws, statics, magnetism, and the laws of the 
tides and of tlie comets, were favorite studies, xlstron- 
oray and mathematics received close attention. 

Art was not so advanced, and English painting 
and sculpture were far behind that of other nations. 

Four ponce a day with food, and eight [)ence with- 
out, was the daily wages of agricultural laborers. 
Foot-soldiers received about the same, while masons 
and brick-layers commanded half a crown a day. But 
comforts were few, and the majority of the people 
lived on rye, barley and oats almost entirely. The 
death rate of London Avas almost twice what it is now. 
Flogging at school, the beating of women and servants, 
was too common to excite attention. The honies of 
England were, indeed, in that day habitations of cruelty. 

The Bank of England, first suggested by a Scotch- 
man named William Paterson, was founded in 1694, 
by the celebrated financier, Lord Montague. Organ- 
ized at first only as a means of providing money for 
the government, it soon exercised all the ordinary 
functions of a bank. 



HOUSE OF STUART. 221 

Jonas Hanway, the eccentric traveller and plii- 
lantliropist, was the first to carry an umbrella in Eng- 
land, as a protection from rain, about the beginning of 
the eighteenth century. It was considered effeminate, 
and excited much ridicule and contemptuous comment. 

Until the advent of William of Orange, we have 
only a sad, dark history of religious persecution, and 
that utter disregard of human life and liberty, which 
made the English courts, under the administration of 
such men as Scroggs and Jeffreys, " little better than 
caverns of murderers." The application of torture, 
and the casting of innocent men into the Tower 
without right or pretense of trial, also disfigure this 
period. 

Coffee was brought into use in 1(552, and coffee- 
houses became common as fashionable resorts and 
centers of gossip. Tea was introduced into England 
about 10 GO. 

The streets of London Avere not protected as now 
by policemen, and ruffianism prevailed there. Bands 
of gentlemen, so-called, amused themselves with ])ar- 
barous sports, such as rolling women down hill in 
barrels. Duels were frequent, and highwaymen 
abounded Avithout and within the city. Hanging was 
the punishment for the slightest offence. The pul)lic 
whipping of women through the streets, the " ducking 
stool," the imprisonment of debtors, the Avooden 
frame called a pillory, in which ordinary offenders 
were fastened to be pelted by the mob, the use of 
Avhich continued until the present century, mark the 
brutality of the times. 



222 ENGLxVND AND ITS RULERS. 

At the time of the Civil War, and during the In- 
terregnum, it has been estimated that there were more 
than 100,000 small landed proprietors in England, 
who were conspicuous on the side of Parliament. 
Every year thereafter, however, their number was 
diminished. 

The reuKxlelling of the charters of the corpora- 
tions by which almost the whole borough representa- 
tion was made subservient to the Crown, and the 
venality of the judicial bench, are marked features of 
the reign of Charles II., Avhile the oath of allegiance 
which avowed: '"I, A. B. declare and believe that it 
is not lawful u})on any pretext whatever, to take up 
arms against the King," was taught in the Homilies 
of the Church, as necessary to salvaticm (see for de- 
tails Lath])ury'3 ''History of ihe Non-jurors,'" Fox's 
''James Ii;' and Birch's " Life of Tilloison''). 



1714 — To THE Present Time. 
HOUSE OF HANOVER. 

(51) GEORGE I., 

SURNAMED GUELPH. 
1714 — 1727. 

He was born at Hanover, May 23, 16G0, and was the 
Birth and oldest son of Ernest Augustus, and Sophia, 
Parentage, gj-and-daughter of James I. 
Accession to He was crowued at Westminster, Oe- 

the Throne, , , „^ -i n i i 

tober 20, 1714 
He married his cousin, Princess Sophia Dorotliea, 
daughter of George William, Duke of 

Marriage. " _ ~ ' 

Brunswick and Zell. He confined her in 
prison at Ahlden, in Hanover, for forty years, pre- 
venting even her children from seeing her; and there 
she died, June 8, 1714. 

jgg^g George; Sophia, married to Frederick 

William, afterwards King of Prussia. 

Intending to visit his electoral dominions in Han- 
Death ^^'^^"' ^^® embarked for Holland, and arrived 
at Delden, in apparently good health. On 
resuming his journey, he ordered his carriage to stop, 
when it was found that one of his hands was motion- 
less, and his tongue beginning to swell. He ex- 
pired on the following day (June 11, 1727), at Osna- 
burg, and was buried at Hanover. 

About medium size, with a face deficient in ex- 

223 



224 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

pression. He was unable t(o write or speak Englisli. 
, , With Dutch honesty and straiojhtforward- 

Personal Ap- •' © 

pearance and ness, hls character vBry nearly approached 
insignificance, but fortunately for the realm, 
he exercised in all things a masterly inactivity, per- 
mitting England to be governed by better men. 

During all this reign the Whigs controlled the 
Notable government, having a large majority in Par- 
Events, liament, under the leadershi[) of Robert 
Walpole, afterwards Earl of Or ford, who for nearly 
forty years, beginning soon after George's succession, 
kept England in peace, and left her free to develop 
her commerce, and thus acquire wealth and attain 
prosperity before unknown. Walpole's power was re- 
tained by an extensive system of bribery and corrup- 
tion, but his administration was a marked improvement 
upon the arbitrary system before prevailing. 

Prince James Francis Edward the Old Pretender, 
married a daughter of John Sobieski, King of Poland, 
a princess of very exalted character. They had two 
sons, Charles Edward, and Henry. The former was 
called the Young Pretender, to distinguish him from 
his father; Henry became a priest in the Romish 
Church, and subsequently Cardinal York. 

In 1715, occurred the Jacobite insurrection. In 
1718, the quadruple alliance of the Empire, England, 
Holland and France against Spain, was formed. In 
17 lU, an attempt Avas made by Spain to invade 
Scotland. 

In 1715 and 1722, the nation was alarmed by con- 
spiracies in favor of the Pretender, but they were soon 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 225 

quelled, as the Jacobite interest had been thoroughly 
extirpated in England, although the attachment to the 
Hovise of Stuart gave it some adherents in Scotland. 
In 1716, an act was passed making Parliament 
septennial. The South Sea bubble occurred in 1720, 
in connection with the South Sea Company, established 
in 1711, for speculation in the gold and other sup- 
posed mines of South America. Bubble companies for 
the most absurd purposes came into existence to satisfy 
a mania for speculation which had become a craze. As 
an example, among them was one for an object, " to 
be revealed thereafter." Stock in it to the amount of 
£2,000 was sold in a single morning, but the next day 
the projectors had disappeared to quarters " not re- 
vealed." Thousands of families Avere ruined by these 
various schemes, and had it not been for the firm 
and determined resistance of Sir Robert Walpole in 
1721, the nation itself would have been bankrupt. 
The East India Company was given the sole control 
of the trade with India. The national debt was £53,- 
000,000 sterling. 

The direct heir to the throne, called the "Old 

Pretender," or Chevalier de St. George, 

son of James II., at intervals disturbed 

the peace of England, but the risings in his favor 

were always speedily quelled and hardly deserve the 

name of wars. Battles of Sheriffniuir and Preston. 

James Francis Edward, the Old Pretender, 1088- 
Noted 1705; Henry St. John, Viscount Boling- 

Persons. ]^Yoke, statesman and litterateur, 1078-1751 ; 
Sir Robert Walpole, afterward Earl of Orford, states- 



226 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

man, 1676-1745; Francis Atterbuiy, Bishop of Roch- 
ester in 1713, 1()()2-1733; Sir Isaac NeAvton, geome- 
trician and philosopher, 1642-1727 ; Sir John Blunt 
and John Law, 1()71-1729, projectors of the South 
Sea scheme; Daniel De Foe, *1663-1731; Dr. Samuel 
Clarke, theologian and classical scholar, 1675-1729; 
Dr. Richard Bentley, critic, 1662-1742; Dr. Hum- 
phrey Prideaux, Dean of Norwich, historian and anti- 
quarian, 1648-1724; Dr. Rol)ert South, divine, 1633- 
1716; Dr. Isaac Watts, divine and litterateur, 1674- 
1748; John Gay, poet, 1688-1732; Tliomas, Marquis 
of Wharton, *1640-1715; Sir James Thornhill, painter, 
1676-1734; Thcnnas Parnell, Irish poet, 1679-1717. 

The following wei-e ministers and advisers to George 
I.: In 1714, William, Earl Cowper (Lord Chancel- 
lor), Charles Talbot, Duke of Shrewslmry, Thomas, 
Marquis of AVharton, Sir Robert AValpole, the Duke 
of Marlborough, Charles, Viscount Townshend, Lord 
Lieutenant of Ireland; in 1715, Sir Rol)ert Walpole; 
in 1717, James (afterwards Earl) Stanhope, 1673- 
1721; in 1718, Charles Spencer, Earl of Sunderland, 
who had been Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in 1714; in 
1721, Sir Robert Walpole. 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 227 

(52) GEORGE II. 

1727 — 1760. 

Birth and He was boru at Hanover, October 30, 

Parentage. j^p^gg^ ^^^^^ ^^^ ^^^ ^^^^ g^^ q£ Qgorge I. 

Accession to He was crowiied at Westminster, Octo- 

theTlirone. ^^^, ^^^ 1^^21. 

He married Caroline Wilhelmina Dorothea, daugh- 
ter of John Frederick, Margrave of Anspach, 

Marriage. ■■ 

on November 20, 1737. She died in 1737. 
Frederick, Prince of Wales, who married the 

Princess Auijusta, of Saxe-Gotha, in 173G. 
Issue. . . 

He left seven other children. Prince Fred- 
erick died from the blow of a cricket ball in 1751, 
aged forty-four. 

Suddenly, on October 25, 17G0, from a rupture of 

the heart. On the morning of his death he 

Deatli. . , . 

walked in Kensington Gardens, l)ut on his 

return home he was heard to fall on the floor and 

was found dead. He was buried at Westminster. 

Sullen and violent in temper, but truthful and re- 

, . liable. He loved money, and cared nothing: 

Personal Ap- '' o 

pearanceand for scieuce or literature. His abilities were 

Character. . , t •• tt i • i 

not above mediocrity. Me was low in sta- 
ture, well shaped and erect, with prominent eyes, high 
nose, and a fair complexion. He loved Hanover 
better than England, and being free from ambition, 
was, perhaps, the better friend to the state on that 
account. England now needed only a fair chance to 
grow, and he was her best ally who failed to interfere 
with her. The right to work and worship in her own 



228 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

way was all she asked, and this the monarch gave her. 
He was created Prince of Wales, October 4, 1718. 

John Porteous, convicted and sentenced to death for 
Notable firing on the populace at Edinburgh, under 

Events. strong popular excitement, was reprieved 

by the English government. This so incensed the 
people, that they broke into the prison, and executed 
him, September 7, 173G. A graphic and reliable 
account of this event can be found in Sir Walter 
Scott's novel the " Heart of Mid Lothian." 

The winter of 1740-17-1:1 was the most severe ever 
known in England, the intense cold continuing with- 
out alleviation, from Christmas until February 2Gtli. 

Commodore Anson returned in 1744 from a voyage 
around the world, during which he captured a Spanish 
vessel and cargo of the value of £313,000. In the year 
1751, by act of Parliament, was adopted what is known 
as the " New Style," or Gregorian Calendar, by which 
eleven days in September, 1752, were nominally sup- 
pressed, and the third day was reckoned the four- 
teenth. By the New Style also, every year divisible 
by four, unless also divisible by one hundred, and 
incapable of division by four hundred, has 31)0 days, 
and all other years 365 days. 

Admiral Byng was shot, in 1757, for neglecting to 
engage the French fleet. 

The greatest Whig administration ever known to 
England, led by William Pitt and the Duke of New- 
castle, gave luster to the concluding years of this 
reign. Pitt had the general direction of national 
affairs, the control of public policy, and the ad minis- 



, HOUSE OF HANOVER. 220 

tration of the war, which was ghadly yiehled to him 
by his colleague, who managed Parliament with a cor- 
ruption never practiced before or since. Every man 
had his price, at which he was bought, to sustain the 
administration. Pitt prided himself on his absolute 
purity ; poor, and content to remain so, he cared not 
for public moneys ; but with his great abilities and a 
single eye to the welfare and reputation of England, 
he made her respected at home and abroad. " He 
loved England with an intense and passionate love. 
He believed in her power, her glory, her public vir- 
tue, till England learned to believe in herself. Her 
triumphs, were his triumphs; her defeats, his defeats." 
Her interests were far more precious to him, than any 
thought of self or party spirit. 

Durinof this reign the control of Great Britain 
over India, was confirmed by the victory of Clive over 
Surajah Dowlali, at Plassy, June 23, 1757, when Clive 
with one thousand Englishmen and two thousand 
Sepoys defeated an army of 04,000, and secured India 
for Britain. The war waged by England in America, 
against the Erench, was a series of successes, and the 
conquest of Canada gained that province for England. 
When Wolfe fell on the plains of Abraliam, aftfer 
lieading a charge which broke the Freneli line, and 
secured the defeat of Montcalm, he asked who they 
were that ran, and being told the French, exclaimed, 
" Then I die happy." The dream of a French empire 
in America was dispelled at the same time. 

The moral condition of England during this reign 
is painful to describe. Public men, generally, were 



230 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

governed solely by self-interest, and the condition of 
the common people might be termed bestial. Licen- 
tiousness prevailed in high places, and strong drink, 
which had partially taken the place of beer, com- 
pleted the degradation of the lower classes. Hogarth, 
Fielding and Smollett have portrayed this in vivid 
colors. Every attempt to restrict the traffic in dis- 
tilled liquors had been met by the popular cry, " No 
gin, no King." The taverns were thronged at all 
hours of the day and night; and in the windows were 
placards announcing, " Drunk for a penny, dead drunk 
for six-pence, clean straw for nothing." Statesmen 
demented themselves with port and brandy, and gam- 
bling was everywhere indulged in. The Church of 
England, wrapped in its stately dignity, had in some 
measure lost control of the people, and its clergy had 
no longer the zeal and energy to grapple with the 
emergency. 

At this time occurred a o;reat relifjious revival. The 
wretchedness of the people was so great, that it ap- 
pealed to the sympathy of an Oxford student named 
John Wesley. He and his brother Charles were in 
the habit of meeting with great regularity for reli- 
gious service, and inducing their fellow students to 
join them. This custom, united with a temperance 
and devotion most earnest and methodical, procured 
for them the name of Methodists, then a term of re- 
proach, but which now has earned the esteem of 
Christendom. John and Charles gave their all to 
the promotion of the cause they were engaged in. 
They carried the gospel everywhere; in the cottage, 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 231 

by the bedside of tlie sick and dying, in the streets, 
and wherever an audience could be gathered they 
preached and Labored. The revival soon spread all over 
England and extended to America. Better than all her 
conquests for Great Britain, was this Christian growth 
which stirred up the national church to emulation, 
while it planted schools, built churches, aiul waged 
fierce and successful warfare against intemperance 
and vice. 

The Mansion House, the residence of the Lord 
Mayor of London, was begun in 1739, and completed 
in 1753, while Sir Crisp Gascoigne held the office. 
• The library of the British Museum was founded in 
1753. 

The year 1750 was noted for the frequency of earth- 
quakes of more or less severity, which occurred Feb- 
ruary 8th, March 18th, May 3d, August 9tli, and Sep- 
tember 30th, in that year. The earthquake in 1755, 
which destroyed Lisbon, was felt in London. 

The first " state carriage " of the Lord Mayor was 
built and used in 1757. It cost £1065, 3s. Formerly 
the Lord Mayor, on state occasions, rode upon horse- 
back. Gilbert Heathcote, in 1711, was the last who 
rode in this manner; from that time until 1757, any 
ordinary coach Avas used. 

The first deaf and dumb asylum was founded in 
England by Thomas Braidwood, in 1760. 

Great Britain, during this sovereignty, became not 
only master of India, but also of Nova Scotia, Canada, 
Florida, and the whole eastern half of the American 
Continent. It is a singular fact that from this time 



232 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

to that of Wellington, England rarely gained any 
military, or lost any naval, engagement. 

Many lighthouses were built in this reign. Solar 
microscopes, ventilators, and the process of stereotyp- 
ing were invented. The Foundling Hospital and the 
British Museum were founded. 

At the beginning of this reign, there were pub- 
lished one daily paper, fifteen tri-weeklies, and one 
twice a week. The Gentleman's Magazine was begun 
in 1731. 

In 1728, the peace of Pardo ended the war with 
Si)ain. In 1729 the treaty of Seville, and 

Wars. , i ^ , •' 

in 1731 the treaty with Holland and the 
Empire were signed. In 1730, war was again declared 
against Spain, and Admiral Vernon attacked the Span- 
ish settlements in America. Porto Bello was taken 
March 22, 1710. An attack was made on Carthagena, 
which proved unsuccessful. 

In 1712, Great Britain engaged in a war arising 
from disputes among the continental powers. Battle 
of Dettingen, in Germany, June 27, 1713. The King, 
"who headed his troops, behaved with great l)ravery, 
exposing himself where the battle raged most furiously. 
This was the last time that a King of England com- 
manded in person. 

Battle of Fontenoy, April 30, 1715. 

Charles, the Young Pretender, arrived in Scotland, 
and gained .a victory over the royalists at Preston 
Pans, near Edinburgh, September 21, 1745. He then 
entered England, reduced Carlisle, and established 
himself at Manchester, November 29, 1745. Return- 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 233 

ing to Scotland, lie won the battle of Falkirk, Jan- 
uary 17, 1740, but was defeated at Culloden, April 
16, 1746, and with difficulty escaped to France. Octo- 
ber 7, 1748, the peace of Aix la Chapelle was signed 
on the part of England by John, Earl of Sandwich, 
and Sir Thomas Robinson. The seven years war with 
France, June 9, 1756, ended by the peace of Paris, 
February 10, 1763. Battle of Minden, in Germany, 
August 1, 1759. Siege of Quebec, September 13, 
1759, resulting in the conquest of Canada. 

William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, 1708-1778; Charles 
Noted Edward Stuart, The Young Pretender, 1720- 

Persons. ^r^gg . j^^^.j Qeorge Anson, admiral, 1697- 
1762; Edward Vernon, admiral, 1684-1757; Edward 
Boscawen, admiral, 1711-176)1; Lord Edward Hawke, 
admiral, 1715-1781; Henry Frederick, Duke of Cum- 
berland, brother of George III., 1745-1790; General 
James Wolfe, 1726-1759; Lord Robert Clive, Gov- 
ernor of Bengal, 1725-1774; Sir John Byng, admiral, 
1704-1757; John Dalrymple, Viscount Stair, diploma- 
tist, 1673-1747; Robert Dodsley, poet, 1703-1764; 
Dr. Hugh Blair, divine and critic, 1718-1800; Horace 
Walpole, Earl of Orford, statesman, 1717-1797 ; Law- 
rence Sterne, Irish divine and humorist, 1713-1768; 
Dr. William Paley, theologian, 1743-1805; James 
Thomson, poet, 1700-1748; Edward Young, divine and 
poet, 1684-1765; Thomas Gray, poet, 1716-1771; 
William Collins, poet, 1720-1756; James Hervey, 
theologian, 1714-1758; Gilbert AVhite, antiquarian 
and naturalist, 1720-1793; Richard Savage, poet, 
1697-1743; Mark Akeuside, poet, 1721-1770; Samuel 



234 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Eicliardson, novelist, 1689-1761 ; Richard Cumber- 
land, litterateur, 1732-1811; Henry Fielding, novel- 
ist, 1707-1751; Dr. Philip Doddridge, theologian 
and author, 1702-1751; Lady Mary Wortley Mon- 
tagu, authoress, 1690-17(52; Sir Hans Sloane, 
botanist and collector, 10(50-1752; James Brindley, 
mechanician and inventor of canal navigation, 1716- 
1772; Edmund Halley, astronomer, 1(55(5-1712; 
William Hogarth, engraver and [xiinter, 1(597-17(54; 
John Smeaton, engineer and mechanician, 1724-1792. 
Tlie following were ministers to George II. : 
In 1742, John Carteret, Earl of Granville, 1(590-1763, 
Lord Wilmington, AVilliam Pulteney, Earl of Bath, 
1082-17(54; in 1743, Sir Henry Pelham, 1(594-1754, 
Lord Carteret, Earl of Harringtt)n ami Duke of New- 
castle; in 174(5, Sir Henry Pelliam, PJjili[) D. Stan- 
hope, Earl of Chesterfield, 1694-1773, John Russell, 
Duke of Bedford, 1710-1771; in 1754, Thomas Pel- 
ham Holies, Duke of Newcastle, 1693-1768, Sir 
Thomas Robinson, Henry Fox, afterward Lord Hol- 
land, 1705-1774, Lord Anson; in 175(5, Duke of 
Devonshire, AVilliam Pitt, George, Earl Temple, Hen- 
eage Legge (who Avas Baron of the Exchequer in 
1747), dismissed in A})ril, 1757, but restored to office 
in June of same year. 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 235 

(53) GEORGE III. 
1760 — 1820. 

He was born iu London, June 4, 1738, and was 
Birth and the eldest son of Frederick, Prince of Wales, 
Parentage. ^^^ grandson of George II. 

Accession to He was crowned at Westminster, Sep- 

thoTiirone. tember 22, 17G1, reigning from 1700- 
1820. 

He espoused Charlotte Sophia, Princess of Meck- 
lenburgh-Strelitz, Se])tomber 8, 1701. She 

MarriaKO. ^ ^ 

died November 17, 1818. 
George, Prince of Wales ; Frederick, Duke of York 
and All)anv; AVilliam, Duke of Clarence; 

Issue. J ' ■> 1 

Edward, Duke of Kent; Ernest, Duke of 
Cumberland; Augustus, Duke of Sussex; Adolphus, 
Duke of Cambridge; and Octavius and Alfred who 
died young. The daughters were Charlotte, Queen of 
AVurtemburg; Augusta Sophia; Elizabeth, married to 
the Prince of Hesse Homberg; Mary, married to her 
cousin, the Duke of Gloucester; Sophia and Amelia. 
After a protracted mental affliction, he expired 
at Windsor, January 29, 1820, and was 

Death. , , •' 

buried in St. George's chapel. 
Clear of purpose and obstinate in the pursuit of it; 
Personal ^^^^^ wretcliedly educated, and without great 
Appearance natural powers ; a good father and husband, 

he had no qualities to make a great monarch. 
He resolved to govern, freed from the dictation of 
parliaments and councils, and to be himself the first 
minister of the State. He employed for that end all 



236 ENGLAND AND ITS IIULEES. 

the power, patronage and influence of the crown. 
Bribery was recklessly employed. Under Bute's min- 
istry, an office Avas opened at the Treasury, for the 
purchase of members, and twenty -five thousand pounds 
are said to have been disbursed for that purpose in a 
single day. The combination of Aveakness, pride, sel- 
fishness and ambition in this monarch was an incubus 
on the progress and strength of the realm, which 
flourished, however, in spite of it. His favorite policy 
is said to have been, "government for, Imt never by, 
the people." George was a fine looking man, rather 
above the ordinary size, Avitli a pleasant face and 
dignified manners. His reign extended over a period 
of sixty years, and he attained an age seldom before 
vouchsafed to any monarch, being, Avhen he died, 
eighty-two years of age. 

During liis sovereignty England lost her posses- 
Notabio sions in America; but the victories of Gib- 

Events, raltar and Trafalgar, and the still greater 

victory of Waterloo, make the reign illustrious. The 
national debt became, in consequence of the great wars, 
so large as to render the burden of taxation almost 
intolerable. The two greatest reforms of the period 
Avere, first, the abolition of the slave-trade in 1807, 
and the mitigation to some extent of the laAvs punish- 
ing debt and crime. The application of steam as a 
motor for manufacturing purposes and navigation, was 
introduced. 

Through the influence of John Wilkes, and the 
author of the famous letters of Junius (supposed to 
be Sir Philip Francis), the element of secrecy began 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 237 

to be removed from the sessioiis of Parliament, and 
the freedom of the press recognized. In 1768, AVilkes 
was returned as a member of Parliament from Mid- 
dlesex, but as he had published a severe attack on 
the government in the " North Briton " newspaper, he 
was declared disqualified, and not permitted to take his 
seat. Four consecutive times he was returned, but 
Colonel Luttrell, who had not one fourth of his vote, 
was as often allowed to exclude him. This course 
of action made Wilkes a popular favorite, and gave 
to his utterances on behalf of reform great weight. 

From the accession of the Georges, imperfect 
reports of the proceedings of Parliament Avere made 
pul)lic until in 1771, the Commons issued a procla- 
mation forbidding the publication of debates, and six 
printers who defied it Avere brought before the House. 
The magistrates of London disregarded the procla- 
mation, and released the printers. Thereupon the 
Lord Mayor of London Avas sent to the ToAver, but so 
overpoAvering was the outburst of public indignation, 
that he Avas soon released, and thereafter no attempt 
made to hinder the publication of Parliamentary 
proceedings. The importance of this change gave a 
poAver to the press which had never before existed, 
and the first great English journals, the Mornino- 
Chronicle, the Morning Post, the Morning Herald 
and the Times, became a power stronger than Parlia- 
ment to form and control public opinion. 

In 1780, there occurred fearful anti- Catholic riots, 
in which a mob burned the Koman Catholic chapels, 
broke open prisons, and committed other unlawful 



238 ENGLAND AND ITS EULERS. 

acts. Many of the rioters were hanged; and Lord 
George Gordon, the leader of the mob, was tried but 
acquitted on the ground of insanity. 

Lunardi, ascended in a balloon, being the first at- 
tempt of the kind in England, on September 15, 1784. 

In 1788 the King became insane. In the same 
year the celebrated trial of Warren Hastings began. 
He was tried for alleged crimes while Governor of 
India. The trial was adjourned from time to time 
until the year 1794, when ho was acquitted. 

The following newspapers were begun: The Morn- 
ing Chronicle, in 1770; the Times, in 1788; and the 
Sun, in 1792. 

The Royal Academy of Arts was founded in 1768. 
The Linnean Society founded in 1788, was chartered 
in 1802. 

In 1797, the Bank of England suspended cash pay- 
ments, issuing notes of one pound and two pounds 
each. The Bank did not resume cash payments until 
an act was passed and provision made therefor, twenty- 
three years afterwards. 

Illuminating gas was introduced in Cornwall, 1792. 

HigliAvay robberies Avere very frequent during this 
reign, and many persons suffered death from hanging, 
the death penalty being imposed for trivial offenses. 
Fifteen persons expiated their crimes on the gal- 
lows in a single day, on the Ifith of June, 1785. 
Macklin, the dramatist, died in 1797, aged one hun- 
dred and seven years. 

In the dealings of Great Britain with America, 
the want of wisdom in the King was obvious. The 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 239 

colonies were unwilling to be taxed without repre- 
sentation. Their claims had been recognized as just; 
and all duties except that on tea had been abandoned. 
In 1773, some English ships laden Avith tea arrived in 
the port of Boston. A mob, disguised as Indians, 
boarded the vessels and flung the contents into the 
sea. Although the act was regretted by Americans, 
the King resolved to use it as a pretext for rigorous 
measures. The port of Boston was closed against all 
commerce, and the State of Massachusetts punished 
by having its charter revoked, and its government 
transferred to officers appointed by the Crown. Pro- 
vision, too, was made for sending those engaged " in 
the late disturbance " to England for trial, and Gene- 
ral Gage was appointed Governor of the State. Lord 
Chatham, and the leading merchants of London and 
Bristol, aided by the masterly eloquence of Edmund 
Bui'ke, pleaded earnestly for conciliation and a repeal 
of the obnoxious measures, but the King was firm, 
and thereupon began the great revolutionary struggle, 
which ended eight years later, in the independence 
of the United States of America. 

Edmund Burke, Charles James Fox and William 
Pitt, eminent not more for their exalted statesmanship 
and patriotism than for the absolute stainlessness and 
uprightness of their lives, by their ability, eloquence 
and learning, made Parliamentary debates at this 
time so notable. Their love of England was their 
life, and showed itself in constant efforts for her 
development and growth, which were too often 
thwarted by the narrow and selfish ambition of the 



240 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

King. The bench also attained eminence during this 
reign through Lord Mansfield and other learned 
judges, and perfected that jurisprudence which now 
so thoroughly protects the rights of Englishruen. 

Through the influence of Pitt, a union w^as effected 
in July, 1800, between England and Ireland, wdiereby 
one hundred Irish representatives were added to the 
English House of Commons, and 32 Irish peers 
(twenty-eight temporal and four spiritual) to the 
House of Lords. Commerce between the two coun- 
tries was freed from all restriction, and every trading 
privilege of the one thrown open to the other; while 
taxation was proportionately distributed between the 
two peoples. Pitt also desired to remove all religious 
tests, and to give to religionists of all kinds equal 
rights: but the plan was too advanced, and enmity 
toward the Roman Catholics too strong, to permit its 
adoption; consequently Pitt resigned in June, 1801. 

In 1805, Napoleon I., Emperor of France, planned 
the destructioji of the English fleet, confident that the 
control of the English Channel would give him the 
mastery of the world. But on the 21st of October, 
1805, off Cape Trafalgar, the English fleet under Lord 
Nelson, who gave as his last famous signal, " Eng- 
land expects every man to do his duty," attacked the 
French fleet and, at the cost of his own life, gained 
the brilliant victory which saved England from 
attempted invasion. The last public words of Pitt, 
speaking of this triumph, were, " England has saved 
herself by her courage, she Avill save Europe by her 
example." 



HOUSE OF HANOYER. 241 

The publication of the Edinburgh Keview was 
begun in 1802, as the exponent of Whig principles. 

England claimed the right to search American 
ships, and to seize English seamen found therein. The 
enforcement of this claim had resulted in great abuses, 
and led to a declaration of war by the United States 
against Great Britain, in 1812. The former was suc- 
cessful in two naval engagements, and in the follow- 
ing year, 1813, the American forces cleared Lake On- 
tario, captured Toronto, destroyed the British flotilla 
on Lake Erie, and mastered Upper Canada. In 1814, 
General Ross, with 4,000 troops, captured Washing- 
ton, and destroyed its public buildings. A force of 
nine thousand veterans in vain assailed Plattsburg, on 
Lake Champlain; and General Jackson overcame a 
force under General Pakenham, which sought the 
capture of New Orleans, and lost half its numbers. 
By this time both countries were anxious for peace, 
and the treaty of 1814, settled the dispute. 

Admirals John Byron, Wallis, Captain Sir George 
Carteret, and Captain James Cook, successively, sailed 
around the world. 

The national debt in 1815, had increased to £860,- 
000,000. 

The Prince of Wales, in consequence of the men- 
tal alienation of his father, was made Regent in 1811. 

Telegraphing by signals was first used by the Eng- 
lish. Prime Minister Perceval was shot, by a maniac 
named Bellingliam, in May, 1812. The allied sove- 
reigns took possession of Paris, when Bonaparte re- 
tired to Elba, in 1814. Peace was restored to 



242 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Europe, and Louis regained the throne of France. 
The Emperor of Eussia and other potentates visited 
England, 

In 1815, Bonaparte landed in France, was defeated 
at Waterloo, and was banished to the island of St. 
Helena, where he died in 1821. 

This reign is made illustrious by many remarkable 
inventions. James Watt made great improvements in 
steam machinery. James Hargreave, a carpenter, in- 
vented the spinning jenney. Kichard Arkwright pro- 
duced the spinning frame, and Mr. Cranipton the 
power loom used in weaving. The attempt to intro- 
duce this machinery was at first bitterly opposed by 
the mechanics as tending to diminish the demand 
for labor, and occasioned many riots and much 
destruction of property. The East India trade, which 
had been in the hands of the East India Company, 
under Acts of 1773 and 1781, regulating it, was in 
1813 opened to English merchants. 

Gaming was carried on to a frightful extent by 
persons of every rank. Even AVilber force dealt faro at 
White's, while Pitt and Lord Chesterfield habitually 
indulo^ed in jjamblinij. 

In London the places of amusement were the 

opera, the theaters, Ranelagh and Vauxhall Gardens, 

and the exhibition of the Academy. The fashionable 

watering- places were Bath, Tunbridge Wells and 

Margate. 

W ars. *=" 

The war with France and Spain contin- 
ued; Belle Isle, off the coast of France, Pondi- 
cherry in the East Indies, many of the French West 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 243 

India islands, Havana in the island of Cuba, Manilla 
in the Pliillipine islands were surrendered to the 
British, and the peace which was declared February 
10, 17(33, ended the Seven Years War. 

The American colonies renounced their allegiance. 

The battles of Lexington April 19, 1775, of Bunker 
Hill, June 17, 1775, and the attack on Quebec, where 
General Montgomery fell, December 25, 1775, were 
followed by many others, the more important being 
those of White Plains, October 28, and November 30, 
1770; of Bennington, August 1777; of the Heights 
of Saratoga, when Burgoyne was surrounded by an 
American Force under General Gates and compelled 
to surrender October 17, 1777 ; Monmouth, June 28, 
1778; Camden, August 16, 1780, and April 25, 1781, 
until on October 19, 1781, General Cornwallis was 
obliged to surrender at Yorktown. This substantially 
decided the contest, and the Peace of Paris, Novem- 
ber 30, 1782, ensued. 

War with France was declared February 6, 1778, 
continuing until the Peace of Paris, January 20, 1783. 
The war with S[)ain, which Avas begun April 17, 1780, 
also closed January 20, 1783. On December 20, 
1780, war with Holland commenced; peace signed 
September 2, 1783. 

Lord Bodney gained a victory over the French 
off Guadaloupe, in the West Lidies, April 12, 1782. 

The historic and memorable siege of Gibraltar by 
the Spaniards and French, whose combined armies 
amounted to over 40,000 men, with 1,000 pieces of 
artillery, aided by 47 ships of the line, and ten floating 



244 ENGLAND AND ITS EULERS. 

batteries mounting 212 guns, besides gun and mortar 
boats, were successfully resisted from July, 1779, to 
February, 1782. The gallant General Eliott was 
raised to the Peerage as Lord Heathfield, Baron 
Gibraltar, for his conduct of the defense. 

The French Revolution occurred in 1789, when 
Louis XVI. and his queen were beheaded. War was 
immediately declared by Great Britain, which ended 
with the battle of Waterloo, June 18, 1815. 

The following are the most important battles of 
the reign: 

Battle of the Nile, in Egypt. August 1, 1798. 

Repulse of Bonaparte at Acre, March 30, 1799. 

Battle of Alexandria, in Egypt, March 21, 1801. 

Engagement near Copenhagen, April 2, 1801. 

Battle of Trafalgar, October 21, 1805. 

Battle of Maida, Italy, July 0, 1806. 

Battle of Vimiera, in Portugal, August 21, 1808. 

Battle of Corunna, in Galieia, January 10, 1809. 

Battle of Talavera, in Spain, July 28, 1809. 

Battle of Barossa, near Cadiz, March 5, 1811. 

Battle of Albuera, near Badajos, May 10, 1811. 

Battle of Salamanca, Spain, July 22, 1812. 

Battle of Yittoria. in Biscay, June 21, 1813. 

]5attle of Waterloo, near Brussels, June 18, 1815. 

Bombardment of Algiers, August, 27, 1810. 

William Pitt, 1759-1806, Edmund Burke, 1730- 
x<,to.i 1~'^"'' Charles James Fox, 1749-1806, 

PerM.ns. Richard Brinsley Sheridan, 1751-1816, 
statesmen; Captain James Cook, 1728-1770, 
Mungo Park, 1771-1805, celebrated discoverers: 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 245 

Drs. John Hunter, 1728 - 1793, John Abernethy, 
1763 - 1831, noted physicians ; David Hume, 
1711-1776, Edward Gibbon, 1737-1794, Dr. Tobias 
Smollett, 1721-1771, Kobert Henry, 1718-1790, 
William Eussell, 1741-1793, and William Kobertson, 
1721-1793, historians; Sir Francis Chantrey, 1782- 
1841, and John Flaxman, E. A., 1754-1826, sculptors; 
Sir J. F. W. Herschel, 1792-1871, Sir Humphrey 
Davy, 1778-1829, Charles Hutton, 1737-1823, Joseph 
Priestley, 1733-1804, Dugald Stewart, 1753-1828, and 
Sir Thomas Brown, 1778 -1820, philosophers ; Sir Will- 
iam Blackstone, 1723-1780, jurist; Sir William Jones, 
1746-1794, Drs. Samuel Johnson, 1709-1784, Samuel 
Parr, 1746-1825, Oliver Goldsmith, 1728-1774, Syd- 
ney Smith, 1771-1845, John Abererombie, 1781-1844, 
and Duke of BridgeAvater, 1736 - 1803, celebrated 
writers; William CoAvper, 1731-1800, James Beattie, 
1735-1803, Kobert Burns, 1759-1796, Robert Bloom- 
field, 1766-1823, Henry Kirke White, 1785-1806, 
Mrs. Barbauld, 1743-1825, Percy Bysshe Shelley, 
1792-1822, John Keats, 1795-1821, famous poets; 
Bishops Porteous, 1731-1808, Newton, 1704-1782, 
Horsley, 1733-1806, Reginald Heber, 1783-1826, 
John Whitefield, 1714-1770, Charles Wesley, 1708- 
1788, and John AVesley, 1703-1791, prelates and 
divines; John Howard, 1726-1790, philanthropist; 
James AVatt, 1736-1819, and John Rennie, 1761-1821, 
engineers; Sir Joshua Reynolds, 1723-1792, Gains- 
borough, 1727-1788, painters; David Garrick, 1716- 
1779, J. P. Kemble, 1757-1823, Foote, *1720-1777, 
and Quinn, 1693-1766, actors; Matthew Boulton, 



246 ENGLAND AND ITS EULER8. 

1728-1809; Lord Kicliard Hill, Commander-in-chief 
of the army in 1828, 1772-1842. William White- 
head 1715-1785. Thomas Warton, 1728-1790, and 
Henry James Pye, 1745-1813, were poets laureate dur- 
ing this reign. 

The following were ministers of George III. : In 
17<U, John Stuart, Earl of Bute, 1712-1793, Sir 
Charles, Earl of Egremont, died 1703, Duke of Bed- 
ford; in 1762, Earl of Bute, George Grenville, 1712- 
1770, Sir Francis Daslnvood; in 1703, Right Hon. 
George Grenville, Earl of Halifax, John Montagu, 
Earl of Sandwich, 1718 1792, Duke of Bedford; in 
July, 1705, Charles Watson Wentworth, Marquis of 
Rockingham, 1725-1782, Henry Fitzroy, Duke of 
Grafton, 173(5-1811, Earl of Slielburn; in August, 

1766, Duke of Grafton, Charles Townshend, 1725- 
17()7, AVilliam Pitt, Earl of Chatham; in December, 

1767, Duke of Grafton, Right Hon. Frederick, Lord 
North, 1732-1792; in 1770, Lord North and Earl of 
Halifax, same year Lord North, Lord Dartmouth, 
Lord Stormont, Lord St. Germain and Lord Hills- 
borough, Colonial Secretary; in March, 1782, Mar- 
quis of Rockingham, Charles James Fox, and others. 
In July of same year, Earl of Shelburne, William 
Pitt and Lord Grantham ; on April 5, 1783, the cele- 
brated " Coalition Ministry" was formed by Charlss 
James Fox, Lord North, Duke of Portland, and others, 
but dissolved December 19 of same year; on Decem- 
ber 27, 1783, a new ministry was formed by William 
Pitt, Lords Gower, Sidney, Carmarthen, Thurlow, 
William Wyndham Grenville, 1759-1834, Henry 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 247 

Dundas (afterward Yiscouut Melville), 1740-1811, 
Lord Mulgrave, Charles, Duke of Richmond, and 
others; in 1780, William Pitt, Marquis of Stafford, 
Lord Hawkesbury, and others ; in 1790, William Pitt, 
Lord Grenville, Duke of Leeds, Lord Camden, and 
others; in 1793, William Pitt, Lord Grenville, Earl 
of Chatham, Lord Loughborough, and others; in 
1795, William Pitt, Duke of Portland, Lord Gren- 
ville, Henry Dundas, and others; in 1796, William 
Pitt, John Farr, Earl of AVestmoreland, Earl of 
Chatham, Lord Grenville, and others; in 1801, Et. 
Hon. Henry Addington (Lord Sidmouth, 1755-1844), 
Duke of Portland, Lords Hawkesbury, Hobart, Eldon, 
and others; in May, 1804, William Pitt, Pvt. Hon. 
George Canning, Lords Harrowby and Westmoreland, 
Duke of Portland, Henry Dundas, and others; in Feb- 
ruary, 1806, Lord Grenville, Lord Henry Petty, Rt. 
Hon. AVilliam AVindham, Charles James Fox, Lord 
Erskine, lit. Hon. Charles Grey, Lord Sidmouth, and 
others; in March, 1807, Duke of Portland, George 
Canning, Lord Hawkesbury, Earl Camden, Rt. Hon. 
Spencer Perceval, and others; in 1808, Duke of 
Portland, Earl Bathurst, Lord Viscount Castlereagh, 
Lords Grenville, Gower, and others; in October, 1809, 
Spencer Perceval, Earl of Liverpool, Marquis Wel- 
lesley. Viscount Palmerston, Richard Ryder as Home 
Secretary. 

Under the regency in 1811, of Prince George, the 
last ministry was continued. In May, Mr. Perceval, 
the Prime Minister, was shot in the House of Com- 
mons, and on June 14, 1812, the new ministry was 



248 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

formed by Earl of Liverpool, Earl of Batliurst, Vis- 
count Sidmoutli, Viscount Castlereagli, Mr. Ryder, 
Earl of Harrowby, Kt. Hon. Nicholas Vansittart, and 
others. 



(54) GEORGE IV. 

1820 — 1830. 

Birth and He was bom at Windsor, Augvist 12, 1702, 

Parentage. ^^^^^ ^^^^^ ^j^^ ^^j^g^ ^^^^ ^^ George III. 

In consequence of his father's mental disease, he 
Accession to was declared Hegent of the kingdom, Feb- 
the Throne. ^,^^^^.^ 5^ -,^^^^^ ^^^^^ ^^^^ crowued King with 

great magnificence at Westminster, July 19, 1821. 
He married Caroline, Princess of Brunswick, 
April 8, 1705. He ruined her life by 

Marriage. ^ _ •' 

neglect and infidelity, and she died at 
Hammersmith, of a broken heart, August 7, 1821. 
The Princess Cliarlotte, horn January 7, 1790, 
She married the Prince of Saxe Cobourcj, 

Issue. _ ^ 

May 2, 1810, and died greatly lamented, 

November 0, 1817. 

^ , After a tedious illness, he died at Wind- 

Death. 

sor Castle, June 20. 1830, and was buried at 
Windsor. 

In youth of exquisite manly beauty, tall and finely 
Pi"opoi"tioned, with an attractive face and 

Personal Ap- ^ ^ 

pearanceand polished manners. He was a courtly gen- 
tleman, ])ut sacrificed to licentious plea- 
sures his good looks, his usefulness, the esteem of his 
subjects and the respect of posterity. His example of 
extravagance, self-indulgence and intemperance, ex- 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 249 

erted a most deleterious influence on his Court and 
people . 

The exhaustion of England, produced by the long 
Notable European war; and the i-apid production by 

""^^ ^' means of improved machinery of various pro- 

ducts far exceeding the demand for them, produced wide 
spread destitution, suffering and irritation. 

Steamboats Avere first brought into use on the Clyde, 
in 1812. Illuminating gas began to be generally used 
in London, in 1815-1810. 

The suspension bridge over the Menai Straits 
was commenced in 1818, and completed in 1825, by 
Thomas Telford, engineer. 

A desperate plot known as the " Cato Street Con- 
spiracy," Avliose object was to assassinate the whole 
ministry, was discovered February 23, 1820, and sup- 
pressed. Arthur Thistlewood and his four principal 
associates. Brunt, Davison, Ings and Field, were 
tried, and executed May 1st, of same year. 

Before his father's death, George had forsaken his 
wife, having privately charged her with infidelity, and 
immediately after his accession to the throne, he 
renewed these accusations, and asked Parliament for 
an act dissolving his marriage. Public sentiment, how- 
ever, was so violent against the King, that the bill 
was withdrawn. Queen Caroline's trial was the most 
exciting event of this reign ; engaging, as it did on 
either side, the most eminent lawyers of England; 
it began August 19, ending November 12, 1820, and 
while its developments increased the popularity of 
|;he Queen, they excited indignation against the King 



250 ENGLAND AND ITS IIULERS. 

and his ministers. The Queen had the entire sym- 
pathy of the English people, and was uniformly 
treated with the greatest respect and consideration. 
Upon her acquittal all London was illumined 

The first stone of the New London bridge was laid 
June 15, 1824. St. Catharine's docks (Thomas Tel- 
ford, engineer), Avere opened in 1828, having cost 
£2,000,000 sterling to build. 

Cambridge Observatory was founded in 1824 

In 1825 the commercial treaty with Prussia was 
perfected, in the interest of London Merchants. 

By the treaty of London, in 1827, Greece became 
an independent kingdom, and Otlio, of Bavaria, was 
appointed King. 

The test and corporation acts of the reign of Charles 
IL, were repealed May 9, 1828; and Ai)ril 13, 1829, 
the laws imposing disabilities upon Eoman Catholics, 
were almost entirely removed by the passage of the 
Roman Catholic Emancipation Act, repealing many 
obnoxious statutes, which had rendered Eoman Catho- 
lics ineligible to a seat in Parliament, had forbidden 
them the possession of arms, and prohibited their 
holding any corporate offices. 

London University, originated by the [)oet Thomas 
Campbell, was opened in 1828, King's College being 
founded in 1830. An attem[)t was made l)y one 
Martin, a religious fanatic, to burn York Minster, and 
considerable damage resulted. The National Gallery 
of Arts was founded April 2, 1824, and the building 
erected 1832-3. 

Steam locomotives were applied to railway traffic 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 251 

in October, 1829. In 1830, the first regularly organ- 
ized body of police was established in London. 

There was no war during this reign except that to 
Wars assist the Greeks in recovering their inde- 

pendence. Battle of Navarino gained by 
Sir Edward Codrington, October 20, 1827. 

Caroline of Brunswick, wife of George IV., 1708- 
Notcd 1821; George Canning, statesman, 1770- 

Persons. 1827 ; AVilliam Huskisson, statesman, 1770- 
18.30; George Tierney, Roman Catholic clergyman 
and antiquarian; 1701-1830; Robert Stewart (Lord 
Castlereagh) 1709-1822; Charles Jenkinson (Earl of 
Liverpool) statesman, 1727-1808; Robert Banks Jenk- 
inson (Earl of Liverpool) 1770-1828, statesman; 
Sir Stamford Raffles, Governor of Java, 1781-1820, 
statesman; Lord Byron, 1788, who died at Misso- 
longhi, in Greece, 1824; Mrs. Ann Radcliffe, novelist, 
1704-1823; David Ricardo, banker and economist, 
1772-1823; Dr. Abraham Rees, 1743-1825, scientist 
and editor of the Encyclopedia; William Mitford, 
1744-1827, author of the History of Greece; Sir 
Walter Scott, novelist and poet, 1771-1832; William 
Roscoe, litterateur and M. P., 1753-1831; Robert 
Pollok, Scotch poet, 1799-1827; Robert Hall, Baptist 
divine, 1704-1831; Adam Clarke, Wesleyan divine 
and orientalist, 1700-1832; Dr. Edward Jenner, 1749- 
1823, discoverer of vaccination; Dr. John Mason 
Good, physician and Hebraist, 1704-1827; Benjamin 
West, 1738 - 1820, and Sir Thomas Lawrence, 1709- 
1830, eminent painters; Sir EdAvard Codrington, vice- 
admiral, 1770-1851. 



252 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

The following were Cabinet Ministers under 
George IV: On liis accession, Earl Liverpool, Yis- 
count Sidnioutli and others were continued. April 
10, 1827, Et. Hoi). George Canning, Yiscount Gode- 
rich. Lord Lyndhurst, Mr. Sturges Bourne and 
others. August 11, 1827: Viscount Goderich, Duke 
of Portland, Rt. Hon. AVilliam Huskisson and otliers. 
January 25, 1828: Duke of Wellington, Rt. Hon. 
Robert Peel, Earl of Dudley, Viscount Melville, Earl 
of Aberdeen, Mr. Herries, Mr. Grant and others. May 
30, 1828: Dake of Wellington, Earl of Aberdeen, Sir 
George Murray, Lord Lowtlier, Sir Henry Harding 
and others. 



(55) WILLIAM IV. 
1830 — 1837. 

William Henry, Dake of Chireiiee (the Duke of 
Birth and York having died without issue), became 
Parentage. j^|,j^^ ^^f England. He was born August 
21, 17(>5, and was the third son of George III. 
Accession to He was crownod at Westminster, Sep- 

the Throne, tember 8, 1830. 

He married Adelaide, daughter of the Duke of 
,. . Saxe Coburi^ Meininjjfen, on July 11, 1818, 

Marriage. '^ » ' J ' ' 

by whom he had two dauofhters; both died 

Death. . . p & ' 

m infan(;y. 
He died at Windsor, June 20, 1837. 
„ , , Of medium heiijht, well formed, and 

Personal Ap- o ' 

pearanceand with a pleasaiit couiiteiiance. His truthful- 
Character. 1 P 1 1 T • 

ness, manly irankness and generous disposi- 
tion, united with a sincere love of his country, and a 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 253 

thorough devotion to its interests, won not only the 
affection of his people, but the respect of posterity. 
Everything that looked to the advantage of England 
had his unwavering, steadfast aid and influence. Heal 
reform found in him a friend and advocate. 

Soon after William became King, the Duke of 
Notable Wellington, his Prime Minister, having re- 

Events, fused all concession to the claims of the 

reformers, was compelled to resign; and Earl Grey 
commenced his brilliant administration. Lord John 
Ilussell in, March, 1831, introduced his Reform Bill, 
but it was defeated. Earl Grey, in May, 1832, intro- 
duced his Reform Bill, which was also defeated, but 
he finally secured the passage of a bill for Parlia- 
mentary reform June 4, 1832, whereby the right of 
representation was taken away from fifty-six " rotten 
boroughs," giving the 113 members so gained, to 
counties or large towns heretofore unrepresented. The 
bill also established a ten-pound householder qualifica- 
tion for voters in boroughs, and extended the county 
franchise to leaseholders and co[)yliolders. 

October 18, 1833, Captain Ross returned to Hull, 
after an absence of four years in search of the North- 
west Passage. 

On the resignation of Lord Grey, in 1834, the 
ministry was reconstructed under the leadership of 
Viscount Melbourne; and though this administration 
was soon dismissed by the King, the new election 
restored a Whig Parliament, and replaced Lord Mel- 
bourne in ofiice. He ably continued the good work 
inaugurated by Lord Grey. In 1833, the system of 



254 ENGLAND AND ITS KULEES. 

slavery which still existed in the British colonies, was 
abolished at a cost of twenty millions sterling, and 
August 1, 1834, no less than 770,280 slaves became 
free men. Quite as important were the laws for 
ameliorating the condition of women, and children of 
tender years, who had been compelled to work far be- 
yond their strength in manual employments. This 
slavery of women and children Avas terminated l)y 
laws forbidding their employment in collieries and 
factories. The commercial monopoly of the East 
India Company was abolished, and the trade with the 
East thrown open to all merchants. 

In 1835, the Municipal Corporations Act restored 
to the inhabitants of towns those rights of self gov- 
ernment of which they had been deprived since the 
fourteenth century. 

1834 saw a system of national education inaugu- 
rated, by an annual grant, devoted to the erection of 
schools, which was the foundation of the present free- 
school system in England. The first electric telegraph 
was established from Paddington to Brayton, in 1835. 

The new London Bridge was opened by the King 
in person, August 1, 1831. The government School 
of Design was founded in 1837. The first lucifer 
match was made in 1829. 

Both Houses of Parliament Avere destroyed by fire 
which broke out early in the evening of October IG, 
1834, and continued with great violence during the 
night, and was only extinguished after the lapse of 
several days. 

This reign was remarkable for the entire absence 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 255 

of war. A railway from Liverpool to Manches- 
ter, was constructed in 1830, by that eminent engineer 
George Stephenson. The motive power was his new 
locomotive, " The Rocket," which first introduced the 
tubular boiler, and employed the exhaust, or escaping 
steam, to increase the draft of the fire. Five ySars 
after, all the prominent commercial cities were united 
by steam railroads; while steam navigation had 
doubled the vessels and tonnage of the country. 

John Loudon Mac A dam, a Scotch surveyor, con- 
structed in the south of England a number of very 
superior roads, made of gravel and broken stone. His 
process soon extended over the civilized world, and 
" macadamized " highways are now known everywhere. 

George John, Earl Spencer, 1758-1834; James 
Noted Saumerez, 1757-1830, Viscount Keith, 1746- 

Persons. 1823, Viscouut Exmoutli, 1757-1833, ad- 
mirals; Lord John Shore Teignmouth, 1751-1834, Gov- 
ernor-General of India; Sir John Malcolm, 1769- 
1833 ; John Scott, Earl of Eldon, Lord Chancellor, 1751- 
1838; Sir James Mackintosh, 1765-1832; William 
Wilberforce, 1759-1833; Thomas Stothard, R. A., 
1755-1834, historical painter; Mrs. Siddons, 1755- 

1831, Edmund Kean, 1787-1833, tragedians; Mrs. 
Hannah More, 1745 - 1833, Lord Ager Ellis Dover, 
1797 - 1833, Charles Lamb, 1775 - 1834, Samuel Tay- 
lor Coleridge, 1772-1834, George Crabbe, 1754- 

1832, James Hogg, 1772-1835, Miss Landon, " L. E. 
L.," 1802-1838, Mrs. Hemans, 1794-1835, authors 
James Smith, 1775-1839, humorist; William God- 
win, 1756-1836, John Gait, 1779-1839, Jeremy 



250 ENGLAND AND ITS UULERS. 

Bentliam, 1748-1832, literateurs ; 8ir Astley Paston 
Cooper, 1708-1841, physician; Adelaide, wife of 
William IV., 1792-1849; John Loudon MacAdam, 
improver of road^vays, 1756-1836. 

The following were the Ministers of William IV. 
On accession the Duke of Wellington and his Cabinet 
continued. November 22, 1830, Earl Grey, Viscounts 
Althor[), Melbourne, Goderich and Palmerston, Mar- 
quis of Lansdowne, Lord Holland, Lord Auckland and 
Sir James Graham. Earl Grey resigned May 9, but 
resumed office May 18, 1832. July 14, 1834, Vis- 
counts Melbourne, Althorp, Palmerston and Duncan- 
non. Lord John Russell, Sir John Cam Hobhouse, 
Lord Howick, Messrs. Rice and Thomson. November 
14, 1834, Viscount Melbourne's ministry was defeated 
and the Duke of Wellington acted awaiting the return 
of Sir Robert Peel, then in Italy, who, on December 
14, 1834, took office with the Duke of Wellington, 
Lord Lyndhurst, the Earl of Aberdeen, Lords Ellen- 
borough, Rosslyn and Wharnclitfe, Sir George Murray, 
Messrs. Baring, Harris and Goulburn, as members of 
his Cabinet. April 18, 1835, Viscount Melbourne 
resumed office with his Cabinet of July 14, 1834. 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 257 

VICTORIA. 

From June 20, 1837. 

In portraying the events of Queen Victoria's reign, 
one most pleasant to study and contemplate, we pic- 
ture a jieriod renowned for the victories of war, but 
even more for those of peace. 

The Princess Alexandriiia Victoria, was the only 
child of Edward, Duke of Kent, the most 

Lineage, Birth 

and esteemed of the sons of George III., and 

his wife, Mary Louisa Victoria, daughter of 
the Duke of Saxe Coburg Saalfeld, widow of Henrich 
Charles, Prince of Leiningen, and sister of Prince 
Leopold. 

The " H®pe of Great Britain" was born at Ken- 
sington Palace, May 24, 1819, at four o'clock A. M., 
and an hour after, was presented to the Privy Coun- 
cillors and Ministers of State, who were in waiting in 
the adjoining room. These were the Duke of Sussex, 
the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Duke of Welling- 
ton, the Marquis of Lansdowne, Earl Bathurst, the 
Bishop of London, and Bt. Hon. George Canning, 
soon to become Prime Minister. The royal infant 
Avas of illustrious ancestry, and her descent is clearly 
traceable through the Guelphs, the Stuarts, the Tu- 
dors, the Plantagenets, the Normans and Saxons, to 
Alfred the Great, and Egbert, first sole monarch of 
England. 

She was baptized, with much splendor, in the grand 
salon of Kensington Palace, June 24, 1819, by the 



258 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Archbishop of Canterbury, and christened Alexaudrina 
Victoria. 

She was happy in the love of her mother, the 
Duchess of Kent, who became a widow in February, 
1820. By this wise mother, with whom she lived at 
Kensington Palace, she Avas inured to simple and regu- 
lar habits. She breakfasted at eight, had luncheon at 
two, and after an early dinner, retired to rest at nine. 
She was trained to obey those laws which give a sound 
niiiid to a sound body. She became not only profi- 
cient in dancing, music and drawing, but also a good 
French, German and Latin scholar, Avith some knowl- 
edge of Greek and Italian ; and very important also, 
she was instructed in the art of good housekeeping. 
Her travels through England were extensive, and 
she gained thereby culture, manners, as well as a 
knowledge of the country. One who saw her in 
youth, says she had a clear, open face, fair hair, can- 
did blue eyes, frank lips, and white pearly teeth. 

May 24, 1837, she attained her legal majority, and 
Accession to as slio had already won the affections of the 
Inditr*^'"'' English people, the day was everywhere 
Incidents. observed with joy and festivity. 

June 20, 1837, King William died, and at five in 
the morning it was announced to the waiting Princess, 
that she was Queen of Great Britain. The solemn 
sense of responsibility for a moment overcame her, 
but she soon rallied. The next day she met the 
Privy Council, took the usual oath, and delivered her 
first State utterance, Avhicli concluded with the 
promise, ever sacredly kept, that she would " steadily 



HOUSE or HANOVER. 259 

protect the rights, and [)r()inote to the utmost of her 
power the happiness and welfare of all classes of her 
subjects." The Queen, in first signing her name as 
sovereign, simply wrote the word " Victoria.'" The 
designation then assumed, she has since retained, and 
has made it respected throughout the world. By the 
operation of the Salic law, the Kingdom of Hanover, 
after the lapse of many years, now became separated 
from that of Great Britain, and the Duke of Cumber- 
land succeeded to the throne of the former. 

Victoria's formal proclamation as Queen of Eng- 
land, was made in the court-yard of St. James Palace, 
June 21, 1837. 

November 20, 1837, the Queen opened her first 
Parliament, which voted her the yearly sum of three 
hundred and eighty-five thousand i)ounds for the sup- 
port of herself and family. June 28, 1838, she was 
crowned at Westminster Abbey, Avith great j)onip and 
splendor, and with evidences of popular devotion 
never before equalled. Tickets of admission to the 
Abbey sold for twenty guineas each; and well they 
might, for the venerable structure had never wit- 
nessed a more impressive ceremony. After the usual 
religious rite, the oath was administered by the Arch- 
bishop of Canterbury, and her Majesty, laying her 
right hand upon the Gospels said, kneeling, " The 
things which I have heretofore promised, I will per- 
form and keep, so help me God." Then followed the 
usual anointing; the Queen sitting in the famous 
chair of King Edward the Confessor, the Archbishop 
anointing her hands and head, and using the cus- 



260 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS, 

tomary formula, "Be thou anointed with holy oil as 
kings, priests and prophets were of old anointed!" 
The Archbishop having then consecrated and blessed 
the crown, placed it on the royal head. The enthron- 
ing and homage followed, completing thus the most 
imposing coronation of which history gives us any 
record. The ruby worn in the helmet of Henry V., 
at the battle of Agincourt, of priceless value, enriched 
the croAvn, while the value of the other precious 
stones which adorned it was one hundred and twelve 
thousand seven hundred and sixty pounds. 

Victoria's character has been one eminently befitting 
a Christian monarch. Her reliijion, broad 

( baracter. _ _ ^ _ 

tolerant, and rooted in charity, has impelled 
her always to seek the welfare of her subjects. 
She has ever had " a tear for pity, a hand open 
as day for melting charity.'" Tempering justice 
Avith mercy, she has feared nothing so much as to 
inflict an injury. It may be said of her, that nothing 
relating to England's meanest subject has been unin- 
teresting to her. 

February 10, 1840, she married Prince Albert, 

second son of Ernest I., Duke of Saxe- 

Marriage. 

Coburg, and of the Princess Louise, daugh- 
ter of the Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. He was 
born at the Rosenau, near Coburg, August 24, 1819, 
being therefore just three months younger than the 
Queen. He was tall, with a well-developed and 
manly figure, a countenance most engaging, a broad, 
expansive forehead, auburn hair and blue eyes. He 
proved a sterling acquisition to the nation, as well as 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 201 

to the Queen. Integrity and rigliteonsness Avere liis 
sword and shield, while fidelity to his high trust 
made him always a favorite with the English people, 
and esteemed everywhere. 

Victoria Adelaide Mary Louisa, born November 21, 
1840; Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, 
November 9, 1841; Alice Maude Mary, 
April 25, 1843; Alfred Ernest Albert, August 0, 
1844; Helena Augusta Victoria, May 25, 184G; Louisa 
Caroline Alberta, March 18, 1848; Arthur William 
Patrick Albert,' May 1, 1850; Leopold George Duncan 
Albert, April 7, 1853; and Beatrice, April 14th, 1857. 

In 1839, was established the uniform penny post, 
Notable wliicli increased the number of letters 
Events. transmitted from 75,000,000 to 380,000,000. 

The author of this plan Avas Mr. Rowland Hill. A 
partial system of |)enny postage existed in 1081, but 
in 1794, the rate was increased to twopence. 

A few months after the Queen's marriage, when 
driving with her husband up Constitution Hill, a 
youth named Edward Oxford, twice discharged a pistol 
at her, but fortunately, neither shot took effect. He 
was arrested and proved insane. This was the first 
of many similar efforts, which only a Divine shield 
seems to have rendered futile. 

November 9, 1841, the Prince of Wales was born. 
The tidings of his birth, gladdened the hearts of Eng- 
lishmen everywhere. But joy was soon changed to 
sorrow by the news of the disasters in Afghanistan, 
the fatal march from Cabul, and the loss of the 
army in Khyber Pass. Subsequently Sindh, and 



202 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

ai'terwai'tls the Piiujaul), ;uul the Kingdom of Oudh, 
were added to British India. 

In 1840, the work of rebuilding the Houses of 
Parliament was begun under the supervision of 
Charles Barrj, architect. They were not, however, 
fully completed until the winter of 1852-3. 

In August, iSll, Lord Melbourne, the Queen's 
favorite minister, went out of office, aiul was succeeded 
by Sir Robert Peel. During his administration 
many oppressive duties Avere abolished, and an Income 
Tax imposed. In Ireland O'Connell, cliarged Avitli 
sedition, was convicted, and Avhile he was soon after 
released, never regained his infliience. 

The Thames tunnel, commenced in 1825 under the 
direction of Sir I. Brunei, was completed August 
12, 1841, and Avas opened throughout for foot 
})assengers, March 25, 1843. Its total cost was 
£()30,000. In 1S42, there Avas much suffering in 
England, Avitli rioting in the mining districts, occa- 
sioned by the duties on imported breadstuffs, which 
enhanced the price of the necessaries of life, leading 
ultimately to the abolition of all duties thereon. 

October 28, 1844, the Queen opened the ncAvly 
rebuilt Royal Exchange, which bears on its facade 
the inscription suggested by Prince Albert, " The 
earth is the Lord's, and the fullness thereof." 

Sir Ilol)ert Peel and Lord Aberdeen resigned in 
July, 184(). Lord John Ptussell succeeded Peel as 
Prime Minister, and under his administration the 
principle of free trade prevailed generally in every 
department of British commerce except as to wine, 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 263 

spirits and tobacco. These, as Napoleon said, have 
broad backs and can comfortably carry the heaviest 
taxes. 

In July, 1847, the Prince Consort Avas installed 
as Chancellor of Cambridge University, in a brilliant 
manner Avorthy of tJiat venerable institution. 

The year 1848, was one of revolution in France. 
King Louis Philippe was deposed and tied, February 
24, to England, and a republic was proclaimed, 
of which Louis Napoleon was made President. It 
was only through the consummate wisdom and con- 
stant labor of Victoria's ministers, that England pre- 
served herself, during this fearful revolution, from 
war and insurrection. No fewer than 28,000 dis- 
patches were sent out this year from tlie foreign office 
alone. 

In September, 1848, her Majesty made her first 
visit to Balmoral, which has since been her favorite 
abode. During this year, also, died Lord Melbourne, 
the Queen's honored friend and adviser, and her main- 
stay during the first two and a half years of her reign. 

In 1849, the objioxious Corn laws Avere finallv 
repealed. 

September 24, 1850, Pius IX., issued a "letter 
apostolic," re-establishing the Eoman Catholic hier- 
archy in England, and September 30, raised JoLn 
Henry NoAvman to the dignity of Cardinal. This 
action created great excitement throughout the h'lnd, 
but such Avas the advance in public sentiment, that 
it soon subsided, and the Roman Catholic Church has 
ever since had a steady growth. 



264 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS, 

In 1850, occurred the death of Sir Robert Peel, 
and Louis Philippe. 

May 1, 1851, the Queen, Avith splendid pomp, opened 
the Great Industrial Exhibition in Hyde Park, London. 
This Avas a grand success, and reflected much credit on 
its originator, Prince Albert, to whose courteous and 
constant attention, as Avell as that of the Queen, it Avas 
largely due. England achieA^ed for science and art, 
in this exhibition, a triumph greater than she had 
ever gained from the laurels of Avar, and men to-day 
recalling it, are filled Avith Avonder. The exhibition 
Avas A'isited by more than six million people, and 
lasted 188 days. The roof alone contained seventeen 
acres of glass. The materials of th(^ building Avere 
sold, for £17,000, in the latter part of 1851, to the 
Crystal Palace Company, Avhicli at once proceeded 
to erect the present gigantic structure at Syden- 
ham, Surrey, It is designed as a place of pernjanent 
recreation for the citizens of Ijondou, not only 
exceeding the former palace in size and beauty, l>ut 
being surrounded by gardens and promenades and 
adorned by the finest fountfuns in England. 

In the fall of 1852, died England's greatest hero, 
the Duke of Wellington, Avhose mastery of tiie art of 
Avar makes him facile princcps, among the great Avar- 
riors of England. This year a slight earthquake 
shock Avas felt in England. History records no less 
than 255 earthquakes in the country. 

In March, 1854, England declared Avar against 
Russia in the interest of Turkey, and of Europe 
generally. Under the pretence of protecting Christi- 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 265 

anity in Turkey, Emperor Nicholas laid claim to the 
allegiance of two-thirds of the Turkish people; the 
difference which had arisen between the Greek and 
Latin Churches as to the control of the holy places 
in Palestine, lying behind this, as a moving cause, 

England and France joined in resisting the claims 
of Russia. The fall of Sebastapol was followed by 
the Treaty of Paris, March 30, 1850, ending what is 
known in history as the Crimean War. In this 
campaign Florence Nightingale made herself im- 
mortal as a minister of love, who, with a devoted 
band of nurses, did so much to alleviate the extreme 
sufferings of the British soldiers. 

England, in 1857, was shocked by the terrible 
mutiny which broke out at Meerut, India. Delhi was 
taken, and its capture was folloAved by the horrible 
massacre of Cawnpore, by Nana Sahib, Avhicli at- 
tended the mutiny of the Sepoys. Eventually, Luck- 
now Avas relieved by General Havelock, and the 
mutiny suppressed by Lord Clyde. In 1858 the East 
India Company was dissolved, and the government 
of India transferred directly to the English crown. 

January 25, 1858, the Princess Royal became the 
wife of Frederick William of Prussia. 

In 1859, an uneasy feeling having arisen as to 
France, volunteer forces were organized, and on 
June 23, 1860, her Majesty held the first volunteer 
review at Hyde Park. Twenty thousand volunteers 
were on the ground; and a similar grand display of 
Scottish volunteers was reviewed by her soon after, at 
Queen's Park, Edinburgh. 



200 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS, 

The policy of Lord Palinerston, Avliicli has been 
described as one of masterly inactivity, was certainly 
wise. His whole energies were successfnlly directed 
to preserving the peace of the nation, and preventing 
entanglement in the strifes which agitated Europe 
and convulsed America. In preserving a calm temper 
amid many irritations, he doubtless promoted the wel- 
fare of the nation by saving it from waste of life 
and treasure, always an incident of war. 

The honored Duchess of Kent died in March, 1861, 
tenderly loved and cared for to the last by her royal 
daughter. But a greater affliction was in store for 
Queen Victoria and England. Oji December 14, 1861, 
the Prince Consort passed away. The nation mourned 
for him, as for a personal friend, and his death 
touched the hearts of Englishmen and Americans 
alike. His blameless life, lit up with so inucli of for- 
bearance, integrity, and loving sympatliy, had en- 
deared him to all who came under his influence. 

July 1, 186'i. Princess Alice was mariied to Prince 
Louis of Hesse Darmstadt. 

March 10, 1863, the Prince of Wales was married 
to the Princess Alexandra, of Denmark, in St. George's 
Chapel, Windsor. 

Americans will never forget the touching letter 
written by the Queen to Mrs. Lincoln, after the as- 
sassination of her husband, the great President, April 
15, 1865. It came home to every American's heart, 
and will be always cherished with love, as a polished 
link in the chain which binds the two great English- 
speaking nations. 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 267 

In the autumn of 1SG5, Lord Palmerston died, and 
on the 9th day of December, the Queen's uncle, 
King Leopold, also died. 

The first session of the seventh Parliament was 
opened February T), 18()(). In March was instituted 
tlie Albert medal for the saving of life at sea. 

The Abyssinian war, caused by the ill treatment of 
British subjects by Theodore, King of Abyssinia, in- 
duced the sending of forces from Bombay, under the 
command of Sir Robert Napier, to obtain redress. 
April 13, 1808, Magdala, Theodore's fortress, was 
stormed, the King killed, his troops utterly routed, 
and his fortress razed to the ground. Sir Robert 
Napier's signal success in this enterprise raised him 
to the peerage, with the title of Lord Napier of 
Magdala. 

In May, 18(')8, was laid the foundation of St. 
Thomas' Hospital. The Holborn viaduct was opened 
November (3, 18t)9, and the next year the new build- 
ings for the University of London. 

In 18G8, Mr. Gladstone became Prime Minister, 
and iinder his administration many important reforms 
were instituted. The claims of the non-conformists 
were conceded in 18G8, in the abolition of compul- 
sory church rates, and in 1871, by the abrogation of 
all reliijrious tests for admission to office, or degrees in 
the universities. The Franco-German war, resulting 
in the utter ruin of the Imperial regime in France, 
broke out in 1870. The plan of the army was entirely 
reorganized, and the system of promotion by purchase 
ended in 1871. In 1872, a measure was passed Avliich 



268 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

secured secrecy in votiug. In tlie year 1876, was 
passed the act known as the "Royal Titles Act," by 
which the title of Empress of India Avas conferred on 
Queen Victoria. Lord Beaconsfield was, from the 
commencement of his political career, a favorite with 
the Queen — one wdiom she delighted to honor. 
Her thorough a})preciation of his eminent servi- 
ces, is shown by the fact, that soon after his death, 
which occurred April 19, 1881, she caused to be placed 
in Hughenden Chapel, a monument with an inscrip- 
tion, whose concluding words are, "erected by his 
grateful and affectionate sovereign and friend, Victoria 
R. I. Kings love him that speaketh right." His 
motto, "Peace with honor," well illustrates the policy 
of his ministry. 

Oil December 14, 1878, the anniversary of her 
father's death, the lamented Princess Alice died. 

The famous obelisk, Cleopatra's needle, was 
brought by steamer from Alexandria, and set up at 
Westminster, January 26, 1878. 

In A[)ril, 1S82. an attempt was made on the 
Queen's life at Windsor, by one Roderick Maclean. 
He Avas tried, convicted, and sentenced to be confined 
during her Majesty's pleasure. In 1885, occurred the 
annexation of Burmah. In 1886, the Royal Hollo- 
Avay College, for the education of women, Avas opened 
by the Queen ; and the great Colonial and Indian Ex- 
hibition, one of the greatest the AvorJd has eA^er seen, 
gigantic both as to space and the character of its pro- 
ducts, was held at Queensland. 

Early in 1887, upper Burmah, Avhich had long 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 269 

been in a state of revolt, was completely subdued 
by the English army under Sir Frederick Eoberts. 
During the same year, Americans exhibited an im- 
mense collection of their national productions at West 
Kensington, covering an area of about twenty-four 
acres. 

The year 1887, being the fiftieth anniversary of 
Queen Victoria's accession to the throne, was cele- 
brated throughout the British Empire as a Jubilee 
year. It began in India on February lOtli, with 
great pomp and ceremony, accom|)aniod by the release 
of a large number of civil and military prisoners. 
On June 21, the Queen, with her children and grand- 
children, attended a sjjecial Jubilee service at AVest- 
minster Abbey. Many foreign sovereigns were pres- 
ent or ^Vere represented by special envoys, and 
the day Avas given np to national rejoicing. A 
" double-florin," and other special Jubilee coins, were 
struck ofp at the mint, and at night, beacon lights 
upon the headlands from Shetland and Orkney to 
Lands End, were simultaneously fired. On the 29th of 
the same month, the Queen paid a visit to Kensing- 
ton Palace, where she was born, and Avhere she re- 
ceived the news of her accession. 

March 29, 1887, the five hundredth anniversary 
of the laying of the first stone for AYinchester Col- 
lege, was celebrated with great enthusiasm. 

The Crimes Bill (Ireland) excited great atten- 
tion. April 11, 1887, a mass-meeting of 150,000 peo- 
ple assembling in Hyde Park to oppose the measure. 
Similar meeetings were held in many parts of Eng- 



270 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

land and Scotland, but on June 17, it was reported 
to the House of Commons, and finally passed August 
11, 1888. August 9, 1887, the five hundredth anni- 
versary of the birth of Henry V. was specially 
celebrated at Monmouth, the distinguishing feature 
being the ringing of the bells of St. Mary's Church, 
which King Henry V. originally brought over from 
France. The final ceremonial of this Jubilee year 
took place in December, when a special envoy was sent 
by the Queen to the Vatican, to congratulate the Pope 
upon his Jubilee. This is the first instance since 
1G89, when Lord Castlem.aine represented James II., 
in a similar capacity. 

In February, 1888, the Fisheries treaty was 
finally agreed upon and signed by tlie United States 
and England. The historic Temple Bar, which some 
years before had been removed fi'om Fleet street as an 
obstruction to traffic, was set up as the gateway at the 
entrance of the park at Theobald, a residence made 
famous by James I., and his wife. 

The most noted event in })(jlitics of 1889, was the 
defeat in the House of Commons of the bill to abolish 
hereditary legislation. On October 14, ls89, Mans- 
field College, the first non-conformist college at Ox- 
ford, was opened with Dr. Fairbairn as principal. A 
charter was granted this year to the British South 
African Company. The Shah of Persia also visited 
England. 

In 1890, was celebrated the semi-centennial of 
the "penny post." June 23rd, Albert Victor, son of 
Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, and heir apparent 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 271 

to tlie throne, was created Duke of Clarence and 
Avondale, and took his seat in the House of Lords. 

In January, 1891, postage to India was reduced 
from five pence to two pence half-penny, large reduc- 
tions being at the same time made to many colonial 
points. The greatest exhibition of the naval power of 
England ever made, took place this year at Ports- 
mouth, in presence of the Queen and the Emperor of 
Germany. 

A remarkable interchange of courtesies took place 
at Portsmouth, in August, 1891, when the English 
fleet entertained a squadron of the French navy, in 
return for the attention shown to English men-of-war 
during the previous year at Toulon. 

Charles Dickens, 1812-1870, William Makepeace 
Noted Thackeray, 1811 - 18G3, Charlotte Bronte 

Persons. (^Curvev Bcll) 1816-1855, Anne Bronte 
{Adon Bell) *1820-1849, Emily Jane Bronte {Ellis 
Bell) *1818-1848, Marian C. Evans {George EViot) 
*1820-1880, Edmund H. Yates, born 1831, William 
Black, born IS-tl, novelists; Thomas Babington Ma- 
caulay, 1800-1859, Thomas Carlyle, 1795-1881, essay- 
ists and historians; Sir Charles Edward Trevelyan, 
1807-1880, Andrew Lang, born 1844, Edmund W. 
Gosse, born 1849, Isaac Disraeli, 17G6-1848, eminent 
writers; William E. Gladstone, born 1809, Benjamin 
])israeli, Earl of Beaconsfield, 1805-1881, statesmen; 
Alfred Tennyson, born 1809, Matthew Arnold, 1822- 
1888, H. A. Dobson, born 1840, poets; Charles R. 
Darwin, 1809-1882, Thomas H. Huxley, born 1825, 
Herbert Spencer, born 1820, scientists; Canon H. P. 



272 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Liddon, 1830-1800, Charles H. Spurgeon, 1834-1892, 
divines; Sir David Wilkie, R. A., 1785-18-11, painter; 
Dr. Thomas Arnold, 1795 - 1842, teacher and histo- 
rian; Theodore Edward Hooke, 1788-1841, journalist; 
Wm. Coke, Earl of Leicester, 1757 - 1839, agricul- 
turist; AVilliam Beckford, 1700-1844, author; Rich- 
ard Grosvenor, Marquis of AVestminster, 1795-1869, 
statesman; Robert Southey, 1774-1843, poet laureate; 
J. Foster, 1770"-1843, essayist; Thomas Campl)ell, 1777 
—1844, poet and originator of the London University; 
Thomas Hood, 1798-1845, humorist and poet; George 
Craikshank, 1792-1878, humorous designer and illus- 
trator; John C. Loudon, 1783-1843, botanist; John 
Dalton, 170(5-1844, chemist and meteorologist; Sir 
Augustus W. Callcott, R. A., 1779-1844, landscape 
and marine painter; Sir Robert Smirke, R. A., 1780- 
1867, architect; Robert Smirke, 1752-1845, artist; 
Mrs. Elizabeth Fry, 1780-1845, philanthropist; 
Thomas Clarkson, 1760-1846, philanthropist; Ben- 
jamin Robert Haydon, R. A., 1786-184(), portrait 
painter; Dr. John Bostock, 1774-1846, physicist; 
George Byng, 1762-1847, politician; Thomas Dibden, 
1772-1S42, dramatist; Thomas Frognall Dibdin, 1770- 

1847, bibliographer; Caroline Lucretia Herschel, 1750- 

1848, astronomer, sister of Sir John ; Sir Samuel 
Rush Meyrick, 1783 - 1848, antiquarian ; George 
Stephenson, 1781-1848, railway engineer and inventor 
of locomotive; Robert Stephenson, 1803-1859, engi- 
neer; Maria Edgeworth, 1767-1849, novelist; Richard 
Mant, 1776 1848, Irish prelate; Margaret Power, Count- 
ess of Blessington, 1789-1849, authoress; Sir Mark L 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 273 

Brunei, 1769-1849, naval engineer and engineer of the 
Thames tunnel ; Isambard Kingdom Brunei, 1806-1859, 
engineer of the steamship Great Eastern; William 
Wordsworth, 1770-1850, poet; William Kirby, 1759- 
1850, entomologist; Sir Kobert Peel, 1788-1850, 
Prime Minister and statesman; Kichard Lalor Shell, 
1791-1851, Irish politician and orator; John Lingard, 
1771-1851, divine, publicist and historian; Benjamin 
Wyon, 1802-1858, medalist; William Wyon, R. A., 
1795-1851, engraver and medalist; Joseph S. Wyon, 
1836-1873, chief engraver of seals to Queen Victoria 
and medalist; Joseph M. William Turner, E. A., 
1775-1851, landscape painter; Thomas Moore, 1779- 
1852, Irish poet; Augustus Pugin, 1769-1832, noted 
architect; Augustin Welby Pugin, 1811-1852, cele- 
brated ecclesiastical architect; Edward Welby I'ugin, 
1834-1875, architect and author; Dr. Gideon Alger- 
non Manhill, 1790-1852, geologist; William Conyng- 
ham. Lord Plunket, 1764-1854; Arthur Wellesley, 
Duke of Wellington, 1769-1852, field marshal, com- 
mander-in-chief of army, and statesman ; Sir Charles 
J. Napier, 1782-1853, general; Sir George Thomas 
Napier, 1783-1855, Governor of Cape of Good Ho})e; 
Sir Charles Napier, 1786-1860, vice admiral; Sir 
William Francis Napier, 1785-1860, general and his- 
torian; Robert Napier, 1791-1876, noted ship-builder. 
Walter Besant, author, born 1838; George Hamilton 
Gordon, Earl Aberdeen, 1784-1860; William Lamb, 
Viscount Melbourne, 1779-1848; Lord John Riissell, 
1792-1878; Edmund Geoffrey Smith Stanley, Earl of 
Derby, 1799-1869; Algernon Percy, Duke of North- 



274 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS, 

umberlaiid, 1792-1865; Henry John Temple, Vis- 
count Palmerston, 1784—1865 ; Lord Kobert Monsey 
Rolfe Cranworth, 1790-1868; Hon. Algernon Herbert, 
1792-1855; Sir James Eobert George Graham, 1792- 
1861; statesmen and cabinet officers, Prince Albert 
Victor, Duke of Clarence, 1864-1892; John Bright, 
statesman, 1811-1889; George Leveson Gower, Earl 
of Granville, statesman, 1815-1891; Piobert Browning, 
poet, 1832-1891; Henry Irving, actor, born 1838. 

The following have been the cabinet ministers of 
Queen Victoria: Upon her accession to the throne, 
Lord Melbourne's ministry continued in office until its 
resignation May 7, 1839. On the 8th of May, the 
Queen requested Sir Piobert Peel to form a new admin- 
istration, but on the 10th, withdrew her command and 
Lord Melbourne's cabinet remained in office. August 
7, 1841, Sir Kobert Peel, the Duke of Wellington, the 
Earl of Aberdeen, the Earl of Haddinurton, the Earl 
of Ripon, Lord Stanley and Mr. Henry Goulburn as 
Secretary of State, took office. July 6, 1846, Lord 
John Russell became Prime Minister, with the Earl 
of Aberdeen and others. They resigned in February, 
but resumed office again in March. In February, 
1852, Earl Derby as Prime Minister, with Mr. 
Disraeli, Mr. Spencer H. Walpole, the Duke of 
Northumberland and others came into power. In De- 
cember of the same year, however, the Earl of Aberdeen, 
Viscount Palmerston, Lord John Russell and others 
succeeded them. January, 1855, Viscount Palmer- 
ston and Lord Cranworth, with Mr. Gladstone, 
the Hon. Algernon Herbert, Sir James R. George Gra- 



HOUSE OF HANOVEE. 275 

liam and others took office. But the three latter 
resigned in February, and Viscount Palmerston, with 
Lords John Russell, Cranworth, and others, came into 
power February 2-1:, holding it until February 7, 1858, 
when on a vote of censure they resigned, and Febru- 
ary 26, 1858, Earl Derby, with Mr. Disraeli, AVal- 
pole, Stanley and others, assumed the reins of gov- 
ernment. They, also, on vote of want of confidence 
resigned, and June 18, 1859, Viscount Palmerston, 
Avith Lord John Russell and others, resumed office, 
retaining the same until the death of Lord Palmer- 
ston in October, 18()5. December, 1805, Earl 
RusselUs ministry, with Mr. Gladstone as Chan- 
cellor of the Exchequer, Lord Cranworth, Earl 
Granville and others were in power. But June 10, 
1800, came Earl Derby's ministry with Mr. Disraeli 
as Chancellor of the Exchequer, Lord Stanley and 
others. December 2, 1808, on the resignation of Mr. 
Disraeli, Mr. Gladstone formed a new ministry. Feb- 
ruary 21, 1874, Lord Beaconsfield's ministry again 
assumed power, with Sir Hugh McCalmont Cairns, Sir 
Stafford Northcote, R. A. Cross, Earls Derby and 
Salisbury, Earl of Carnarvon, Sir M. H. Beach and 
others. April 28, 1880, saw a Gladstonian ministry 
again in power with Lord Selborne, Mr. Childers, 
Earls Kimberly, Derby and Granville, Sir W. Har- 
court. Marquis of Hartington and others. June 25, 
1885, the Salisbury ministry came into office; Mar- 
quis of Salisbury, Prime Minister, Lord Halsbury, 
Sir M. H. Beach, Sir R. A. Cross, Col. Stanley, 
Lord Randolph Churchill and others. July 0, 1886, 



270 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

Mr. Gladstone was called into power as Prime Minis- 
ter, with Lord Herscliel, Sir W. Harcourt, Mr. 
Cliilders, Lord Roseberry, Earls Granville and Kim- 
berly, and Mr. John Morley. August 3, 188(), the 
Salisbury administration took office, with the Marquis 
of Salisbury as Prime Minister, Lords Halsbury 
and llandolpli Churchill, Mr. Goschen, Lord Idtlesley, 
Mr. Henry Matthews, Hon. E. Stanhope, Lord Knuts- 
ford, Mr. James Balfour, Mr. W. S. Jackson and 
Viscount Cross. 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 277 



HISTORICAL MEMORANDA CONNECTED WITH THE 
HOUSE OF HANOVER. 

George I. knew little, and cared less, about Eng- 
land. He could not speak a word of English, and 
even tlie coronation service had to be translated to him 
iu such broken Latin as his ministers were able to use. 
He ate, drank, smoked his pipe, and allowed Sir Robei't 
Walpole to manage the country in his own way. Sir 
Robert, who became Premier in 1721, chose his own 
cabinet, a custom Avhicli has since continued to be 
observed. 

Lady Mary Montagu, in the early part of the 
reign of George I., introduced from Turkey, the sys- 
tem of inoculation for small-pox. It was first tested 
on criminals in Newgate, and proving eminently suc- 
cessful, was tried even on members of the royal family. 
The medical profession opposed it as an " invention of 
Satan, intended to counteract the purposes of an all- 
wise Providence," but the new practice gradually 
gained ground until it was superseded by the art of 
vaccination, discovered by Jenner in 1700. 

During the reign of George IL, in the year 1715, 
the Young Pretender, Charles Edward, made his last 
attempt on the English crown, but was, as we have 
seen, utterly routed with great slaughter at the Bat- 
tle of Culloden. Fleeing to France, the last of 
the House of Stuart died at Rome, in 1788. The 
condition of the people in the reign of George III., 
is well portrayed, in all its coarseness and brutality, 
by Hogarth and Fielding. Intoxication, with its con- 



278 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

comitaiit ills, prevailed to a frightful extent every- 
where. The brijxhtest and the most noble feature in 
George Ill's reign, was the great religious movement 
instituted under the leadership of the Wesleys. " A 
movement which founded schools, checked intemper- 
ance, and brought into vigorous activity all that was 
best and bravest in a race that when true to itself is 
excelled by none." 

In til is reign, also, the first canal for the trans- 
portation of goods, Avas built in the north of England. 
Canals now form a network all over the land. 

In 17(51), James AVatt obtained his first patent for 
an improved steam-engine. He took a working model 
to the King. His Majesty patronizingly asked him, 
" AVell, my man, what have you to sell?" The in- 
ventor proni[)tly answered, " What kings covet — may it 
please your Majesty — poAver." In 1811, however, such 
was the increase of machinery driven by steam, and 
so great the improvements made by Hargreaves, Ark- 
wright, Crompton and others in machinery for spin- 
ning and weaving, that great distress arose among the 
working classes. They saw their hand labor super- 
seded by patent monsters of "fire and iron." Driven 
almost to starvation, they attacked the mills, broke the 
machinery, and sometimes even burned the buildings. 
They Avere led by a man named Ludd. Much damage 
was done before these riots were suppressed and the 
leaders executed. 

In lG9r), Thomas Savery obtained a [)atent for a 
steam-engine "to be Avorked by fire, for driving mills 
and raising Avater." 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. " 279 

In 1736, letters patent were issued to Jonathan 
Hulls for propelling ships by means of a steam-engine 
acting on Savery's principle. In 1769, came James 
Watt's invention of an improved steam-engine. Will- 
iam Symington ])uilt a boat and experimented with the 
application of steam power to it in 1788, but with only 
partial success. Nothing further was done until 1801, 
Avlien Lord Dundas constructed a steamboat to tow 
barges on the Forth and Clyde Canal. " The Charlotte 
Dundas " was the parent boat as far as the use of steam 
for paddle wheels is concerned. Its trial trip in 
March, 1803, precedes the discovery of Fulton, who 
came to Scotland in 1805, made drawings of her, and 
completed his boat, " the Clermont," in 1807. In 
1811, tlie Comet was built by James Bell. It was 
designed to ply between Glasgow and Greenock. Her 
first trip was made in August, 1812. Armed paddle- 
wheel steam vessels were first introduced into the 
royal navy in 1832. 

In 1774, Dr. Joseph Priestly discovered oxygen, 
which laid the foundation for modern chemical science. 

Toward the close of the reign of George III., 
London was first lighted by gas. Its streets could 
hardly be said to have been lighted before. The new 
light, as Miss Martineau observed, did more to pre- 
vent crime than all that government had ever done 
since the time of Alfred the Great. 

In the reign of George IV., London had a popu- 
lation of 1,500,000; but up to that time did not pos- 
sess an efficient police force. Sir Robert Peel, in 
1830, procured the passage of a bill organizing a new 



280 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

and capable body of police, who were properly equip- 
ped and uniformed. 

The progress of banking is shown by the fact 
that sixty years ago only one public banking house 
existed in London, while at the Bank of England 
private accounts were at that time rarely opened, and 
then with the greatest difficulty. 

The first railroad opened in England in 1825 for 
tlie conveyance of freight and passengers, using steam 
traction, was the Stockton and Darlington, which was 
followed September 15, 1830, by the Liverpool & 
Manchester Railroad, both roads having only a mile- 
age of eighty-six miles; while in 1871 there were 
15,000 miles, and in 1880, 10,000 miles of road in 
successful operation. Ten miles an hour also was, 
for some time after the first date, considered a dan- 
gerous rate of speed, while to-day the " Flying 
Dutchman " train, connecting London and Bristol, 
makes 118^ miles in the same number of minutes. 
Mr. Charles Pearson, solicitor to the city of London, 
originated the system of underground metropolitan 
railways in 1837, and the first section of the line from 
Paddington to Farringdon Street, was opened in Janu- 
ary, 18()3, conveying, in 1877, over 56,000,000 passen- 
gers, or more than one million a week, at an average 
rate of about twopence per mile. Over the quadruple 
part of the line, between Farringdon and Moorgate 
Streets, 586 trains noAv run every day. 

The first photographs were produced in England in 
1802, but were not perfected until 1811. The history 
of the advance made in this art, would require of it- 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 281 

self a volume. Louis J. M. Daguerre invented the 
process of daguerreotype in 1839. The original idea, 
however, is traceable as far back as the time of Kos-er 
Bacon. 

Postage stamps were first used in England in the 
year 1840. 

Lithography, invented by Alois Senefeld, in 1817, 
came into general use in England in 1837, but it has 
been vastly improved during the two last decades. 

The first complete sewing-machine was patented by 
Elias HoAve, Jr., in 1846. 

The building occupied by the British Museum, 
was commenced in 1823, and only completed in 1852. 
Nearly a million people visit it annually. 

The largest ship ever built, the Great Eastern 
(recently broken to pieces and sold to junk dealers), 
was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunei, and con- 
structed by Scott Russel, at Maxwell, on the Thames. 
Work on the great vessel was commenced in May, 
1854. She Avas successfully launched January 13, 
1858. The launching occupied two months and ten 
days. Her total length Avas 600 feet, breadth 118 
feet, and total burden 12,000 tons. 

The electric light Avas invented by Lodyguin and 
Kossloff, at London, in 1874. In February, 1881, 
electric lights of 2,000 candle poAver were used for 
lighting the Waterloo Station of the London & South- 
western Railway Company, and in 1884 electricity Avas 
first used for lighting railroad trains. In 1858, the 
Avorks of the neAv Westminster Bridge, London, Avere 
illuminated by Watson's electric light, and the fol- 



282 ENGLAND AND ITS KULERS. 

lowing year tlie magneto-electric light, invented by 
Prof. Holmes, was successfully tried at the lighthouse 
at Dover, The incandescent light Avas invented in 
1876. 

The first attempt to use electricity as a motive 
power was made in September, 1842, and a S2)eed of 
four miles an hour attained. 

The system of ocean telegraphy, inaugurated in 
185(), after three unsuccessful attempts was finally 
perfected in 18()G, and tAvo cal)les laid along the bed 
of the Atlantic, united England and America. Soon 
after cables were laid across the Persian Gulf, bring- 
ing India and Enghand into telegraphic conununica- 
tion. 

Tlie discovery of anaesthetics during the latter part of 
this dynasty, has done much to alleviate human suffer- 
ing. The value of chloroform for that purpose was first 
suggested by Dr. Guthrie, in 1831, but it was not re- 
duced to practice until November, 1817, Avlien it was 
successfully tried by Sir James Y. Simpson, and the dis- 
covery of its anfcsthetic properties announced to the 
world. On the lUth of December, 181(3, ether was first 
used as an ansGsthetic in extracting teeth by Mr. Rob- 
inson, a dentist of London, and January 19, 1817, by 
Sir Janies Y. Simpson, of Edinburgh, in obstetrics. 
Laughing or nitrous oxide gas Avas first used to 
deaden sensibility to pain in 1844, but the name of its 
inventor remains unknown, although Priestly dis- 
covered many of its properties in 1770. Cocaine, a 
discovery of the last fcAV years, is now extensively 
used in producing local anaesthesia. It was first in- 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 283 

trocluced to general notice about 1885, by Albert 
Niemau, of Goslar. 

The progress of steam navigation will appear from 
the following facts: The first steamboat in Great 
Britain, called the Comet, built to navigate the Clyde, 
was launched in 1812. The first ocean steamboat cross- 
ing the Atlantic, was the Savannah, an American built 
vessel, Avliich in 1819 made the passage from Savan- 
nah, Ga., to England, in twenty-six days. The first 
ocean steamer launched in London, was the Syrius, 
whose first voyage was made from London to New 
York, in 1838, in seventeen days. In 1838, the famous 
Cunard Line was organized. The first ocean steamer 
built of iron, was the Great Britain, which made her 
first voyage in July, 1883. " The Royal Sovereign," 
tlje largest war steamer in the world, was launched 
in February, 1891, having a capacity of 14,150 tons; 
being 380 feet in length by 75 in width, able to 
make 17i knots an hour. It is protected by steel 
armor, and carries 14 guns, of a weight and power 
more formidable than any hitherto known. 

About the same time also the Cunard Steamship 
Company contracted for three steamers, each being of 
14,000 tons burden, and designed to make the passage 
from New York to Liverpool in five days. Steamers 
of other companies already are approximating this 
proposed standard. 

The long distance telephone, the typewriter, the 
phonograph, stenography, and other facilities for 
transacting all kinds of business, have been in- 
vented. The improved printing press has also pro- 



284 ENGLAND AND ITS RULERS. 

diiced a revolution in the production of books and 
newspapers; the great dailies being now issued, in 
numerous editions, not as a sheet, but a volume. 

The largest anvil in the world was recently con- 
structed at the Woolwich Arsenal. Its weight is 
sixty tons, and tlio block on Avhich it rests weighs 103 
tons. 

The principal reforms instituted during this dynasty, 
may be briefly summarized as follows: The criminal 
code has been thoroughly revised and adapted to the 
advanced thought of the century. The poor laws have 
been radically reformed, and the monopoly of the Corn 
laws swept away. The labor of English workmen has 
been better appreciated, and the natural rights of wo- 
men and children protected. Education, books, news- 
papers and periodicals have been placed within the 
reach of all. The penny post has made communi- 
cation l)y letter a privilege of the poor as well as 
the rich. Steam and electricity have brought the 
inhabitants of Christendom closer together. Work- 
men labor fewer hours for higher wages. Toleration 
has put an end to religious grievances, and church 
rates have been done away with. The universities are 
now o})en to all classes. Flogging in the army, and 
promotion by purchase no longer exist. Crime of 
all kinds has diminished, and the various religious 
bodies have increased in power and influence. 

The same progress is noticeable in the British 
colonies — in India, Canada and Australia. Their 
rapid development and increased attachment to Eng- 
land is remarkable. The power and freedom of the 



HOUSE OF HANOVER. 285 

press has grown immensely. The House of Commons, 
too, has become the representative of the people, and 
the exponent of English thought and will. 

Thackeray, Macaulay, Tennyson, Dickens, Carlyle, 
George Eliot, Charlotte Bronte and a host of others 
eminent in literature, have shed the light of letters on 
Victoria's reign. 

The improvement in the social condition of the 
people is also very marked. The average wealth of the 
country has greatly increased, the deposits in sav- 
inors banks showin<]f that the laborinij classes are 

r> o o 

acquiring habits of thrift. Free libraries, reading- 
rooms and art galleries are open to them. Sanitary 
regulations protect the health of all classes, and have 
nearly obliterated many of the diseases once produced 
by bad ventilation and defective sewerage. Prison 
discipline has ceased to be, as it once was, a terror 
and to a marked extent a demoralizing influence, while 
the wants and interests of the convict are guarded 
by benevolent organizations formed for that purpose, 
England has become emphatically the home of 
freedom and progress, having a government the 
ultimate object of whose institutions is the happiness 
and welfare of her citizens. To appreciate the priv- 
ileges she now enjoys, we need only contrast the 
present time with the dark days of her youth and 
early age. With a press at once lofty in tone, 
erudite and brilliant, to guide and control public 
sentiment, her course hereafter must be onward and 
upward. 



INDEX. 



Abbeys: St. Albans 0; Battle 
34; Fevershain 4G; Glaston- 
burvlO; Leicester 132;Reaci- 
in«,'"42; Westminster 12, ±J, 

2:i, 75. 

Ahbevs used for schools 50. 
Ahercrombie, yohn, M. D. 245. 
Aberdeen, LoVd 25-2, 250, 202, 

273, 274. 
Abernethy, Dr. John 245. 
Abyndon, Richard 78. 
Abyssinian War 267. 
Academy of Arts 2:^. 
Addiiij^ton, lh)n. Henry 247. 
Addison, Joseph 215. 

Adela, D;uii,rhler William I. 40. 

Adelaide, Queen 252, 250. 

Adelais of Brabant 41. 

Administrators or ministers to 
the Crown 138, 139, 140, 150, 
167, 175, 196, 201, 209, 215, 216, 
226, 234. 240, 247, 248,252, 250, 

274. 275, 270. 

Admiral, First High appointed 

i;r). 

Adrian IV., Pope 58. 

Adrian or Hadrian, Roman 

Emperor 27. 
Adventists 176. 
Aetius, Roman Consul 9. 
Afghanistan 261. 
Agricoia, Roman General 6, 27. 
Agriculture 2, 12, 26. 50. 92, 120. 

218. 
Akenside, Mark 233. 
Alban, St. Martyr 0, 27. 
Albans, St. Origin of the Ducal 

House of 194^ 



Albert Edward, Prince of 

Wales 201, 266. 
Albert Victor, Prince, Son of 

Prince of Wales 270, 274. 
Albert, Prince, Husband of 

Queen \'ictoria 260. 262. 263, 

200. 
Albert medal 207. 
Albioti, The name 2. 
Alcuin, Tutor of Charlemagne 

28. 
Alderney, Island of 34. 
Aldhelm, or Adelm, The first 

British poet 28. 
Aldred or Aired, Archbishop 

.30. 
Alexander II. of Scotland 03. 
Alexander III. of Scotland 09. 
Alexandra, Princess of Wales 

200. 
Alfred, or Aleric, Historian 28. 
Alfred Ernest Albert, Prince 

261. 
Alfred, Son of Ethel red II. 22. 
Alfred, The Great 14 et seq. 
Alice, Princess 261, 266, 268. 
Allegiance, Oath of 222. 
Alliance, Quadruple 224. 
Alliance, Saxon 9. 
Allingtoii, William, Speaker 

110. 
Alonzo of Aragon, Peace with 

76. 
Alphonso of Castile 52. 

Althorp, (see Spencer). 
Amelia, Princess 235. 
America 125, 163, 236, 238, 239, 

241, 243. 
Anaesthetics 282. 



287 



288 



INDEX. 



Andreas Bernard, Poet Lau- 
reate 156. 
Angeln 9. 

Angevins, The name 52. 
Angles 9, 10, 11. 
Anglia East, Kingdom of 10. 
Anglo-Saxons 25. 
Angus Archibald, Earl of 

Douglas 15G. 
Anlass, Danish General 18. 
Ann, Daughter Charles I. 168. 
Anne of Cleves 129. 
Anne of Denmark, wife of 

James I. 160, 161. 
Anne, Queen 197, 199, 210. 
Anne Hyde, wife of James II. 

197. 
Anne of Luxembourg, wife of 

Richard II. 87, 90. 
Anne Neville, of Warwick, wife 

of Richard III. 116, 119. 
Anselm, Bishop 38, i3, -15. 
Anson, Lord George, Admiral 

228, 233, 234. 
Apollo, Temple of 12. 
Aquinas, St. Thomas 73. 
Archbishop, The first executed 

for treason 101. 
Architecture 25, 39, 51, 92, 120, 

126, 152. 
Argvle, Earl of, Rebel 200,201. 
Ark'wright, Richard 212. 
Arleites, Mother of William I. 

29. 
Arlington, Earl of 196. 
Armada, Spanish 150, 154, 155. 
Arms 158. 

Army 172, 184, 204, 218, 265. 
Arnold, Matthew, Author 271. 
Arnold, Thomas, Historian 272 
Art, 137, 220. 

Art, National Gallery of 250. 
Art, Royal Academy of 238. 
Art School of Design 254. 
Arthur, Duke of Brittany 65,68. 
Arthur, Prince of the Silures 

11. 
Arthur, Son of Henry VII. 

122. 123. 
Arthur Prince, Son of \'ictoria 

261. 



Arundel Robert de, Hebraist 73. 
Arundel, Thomas, Archbishop, 

105. 
Arundel, (see Howard). 
Ascham, Roger 155. 
Ashburton, (see Baring). 
Ashley Lord 196. 
Ashmole, Elias 209. 
Asser, Bishop 15, 28. 
Atheliv, Fort 14. 
Atheling. Edgar .34, .30, 39. 
Athelstan, Son of Edward I. 17. 
Atterbury, Bishop Francis 226. 
Atterbury, Lewis 215. 
Aubrey, John, Antiquarian 209. 
Aubrey, William, Antiquarian 

156. ■ 
Auckland, Lord 256. 
Audley, Lord Thomas 138. 
Augusta, Princess, Daughter 

George II. 227. 
Augusta Sophia, Daughter of 

George III. 23-'). 
Augustine, Saint 11. 
Augustus Frederick, Duke of 

Sussex 235, 257. 



B 



Babington, Anthony, Conspira- 
tor 1.50. 

Babington, William, Chief Jus- 
tice 110. 

Bacon, Francis, Lord Verulam 
165, 167. 

Bacon, Sir Nicholas 156. 

Bacon, Roger, Philosopher 71, 
73. 

Bahama Islands Discovered 125. 

Baker, Sir John 142. 

Baldwin v! of Flanders 29. 

Balfour, James 276. 

Baliol, Edward, Claims Scottish 
Crown 83. 

Baliol, John, Claims Scottish 
Crown 75, 78. 

Balliol, .Sir John, Founder Bal- 
liol College, Oxford 73. 

Balloons 2.38. 

Bank of England 206,220,238, 
280. 



INDEX. 



289 



Banking 280. 

Barbauld, Anne Letitia 245. 

Bare-bones Parliament 179. 

Baring, Alexander, Lord Ash- 
burton 256. 

Barometers 220. 

Baronet, Title created- 1G3. 

Barons, Revolts of 44, 48, 67, 
72, 73. 

Barowe, Lord Thomas 115. 

Barrow, Dr. Isaac, Prelate 196. 

Barrj, Gerald, Prelate 73. 

Barton, Robert 81. 

Bath, Order of, Instituted 99. 

Bathurst, Earl, 247 257. 

Battle Abbey, built 34. 

Battles: Acre 62, 244; Agin- 
court 104; Albuera244; Alex- 
andria 244; Algiers 244; Al- 
manza 214; Alnwick 40, 57; 
Ascalon 62; Atherton Moor 
174; Banbury 114; Bannock- 
burn 80; Barnetll4; Barossa 
244; Bennington 243; Blen- 
heim 214; Bosworlh F'ield 
117, 118; Both\vell Bridge 
195 ; Bo \- n e 205, 208 ; B r e n li e - 
ville 45;' Bunker Hill 243; 
Camden 243; Carlisle 232; 
Carthagena 232; Chalgrove 
Field, 174; Copenhagen 244; 
Corunna 244; Crecy 86; 
CuUodcn 233; Dena'in 215; 
Dettingen 232; Dunbar 177; 
Edgehill 172, 174; Evesham 
73;>alkirk (1297), 78; Falkirk 
(1746), 233; Flodden 137; Fon- 
tenoy 232; Gibraltar 214; 
236,243; Gisors 62; Guine- 
gate or Spurs 137; Hailidown 
Hill (1333) 85 ; Hailidown 
Hill (1402) 100; Hastings 23, 
30, 36; Hengesdown 13; 
Herrings 108; Hexham 114; 
La Hogue 208; Lansdown 
174; Lewes 72, 73; Lexington 
243; Lincoln (1140) 48; Lin- 
coln (1217) 72; Llandilovawr 
78; Maida 244; Malplaquet 
215; Marston Moor 172, 174, 
178; Minden 233; Mon- 



mouth 243; Mortimer Cross 
109, 114; Nasebj 172, 173, 
175; Navarino 251; Naver- 
ete 85; Neville Cross 85; 
Newbury 174; New Orleans 
241; Nile 244; North Aller- 
ton 48; Oudenarde 214; 
Pinkie 142; Plassy 229; 
Plattsburg 241; Poitiers 
86; Porto Bello 232; Pres- 
ton 225; Preston Pans 232; 
Quebec 233,243; Ramilies 
214; Salamanca 244; Sara- 
gossa 215; Saratoga 243; 
Sedgemoor 200; Senlac 31; 
Seven Oaks 107; Sheriff- 
niuir 225; Shrewsbury 100; 
Solwav 137; Southwold Bay 
195; Spurs or Guinegate 
137; St. Albans 109, 114 
Standards 48; Stamford 114 
Stoke 127; Talavera 244 
Trafalgar 236, 240, 244 
Tewksbury 114; Towton 114 
Verne uil "108; Vigo 214 
Vimiera 244; Vittoria 244 
Wakefield Green 109; Water- 
loo 236, 242, 244; White 
Plains 243; Worcester 177; 
York 23; Yorktown 243. 

Baxter, Richard 200. 

Bajeux Tapestry 39. 

Beatrice, Princess 261. 

Beattie, James 245. 

Bcauchamp, John, Admiral 87, 
89. 

Beaufort, Cardinal Thomas 105. 

Beaumont, Francis, Dramatist 
155. 

Beaumont, John, First English 
Viscount 109. 

Becket, Thos. a 54. 55, 58,133. 

Beckford, William 272. 

Beckington,Bishop Thomas 115. 

Bede or Baeda, Historian 16, 
28. 

Bedford, John, Duke of 105. 

Bedford (see Russell). 

Beef Eaters 125. 

Beer 219. 

Belet, Michael, Judge 63. 



290 



INDEX. 



Belknap, Robert, Chief Justice 
86. 

Bell, James, Ship Builder 279. 

Bell, Sir Robert, Baron of Ex- 
chequer 156. 

Benoit, Biographer 63. 

Bentham, Jei emv, Divine 256 

Bentley, Dr. Richard 226. 

Berengaria, Queen 58. 

Berkeley, Sir Maurice, Tudge 
144. 

Bernard, Edward, Astronomer 
209. 

Bernardi, John, Adherent of 
James 11:209. 

Berslede, Walter dc, Judge 73. 

Bertha, wife of Ethclbert I. 11. 

Besant, Walter 273. 

Bihl.% The 17. 18, 134, 1.T), 141. 
143, 158, 1G3. 

Bill of Rights 204. 

Bill, William, First Dean of 
Westminster 156. 

Bills of Exchange 89. 

Jiirch, John 156. 

Black, William 271. 

Blackstone, Sir William 245. 

Blair, Dr. Hugh 23.3. 

Blake. Robert, Admiral 181. 

Blanche, Daughter Henry IV. 
97. 

Blanche, Wife John O'Gaunt 
87. 

Blank Verse, First written 136. 

Blankets, First woven 84. 

Blessington, Countess of 272. 

Blood, Circulation of disco\- 
ered 165. 

Bloodv-Bill, The 134. 

Bloonifield, Robert 245. 

Blue-coat School 141. 

Blundcvil, Randolph, Earl of 
Chester 63. 

Blunt, Sir John 226. 

Boadicea. Queen 5, 6. 

Bohun, M.irv de. Wife of Hen- 
ry IV. 97." 

Bofevn, Anne 128, 129, 132. 

Bolingbroke (see .St. John). 

Bolingbroke, Henrv, .After- 
ward Henry IV. <X)", 97. 



Bombay, ceded to England 193. 
Bonne, Princess of .Savoy 112. 
Bonner, Bishop Edmund 145. 
Borde, Andrew 142. 
Bore, Catharine, Wife of Mar- 
tin Luther 142. 
Borham, Dean, Hervius de 74. 
Boscobel-oak 177. 
Boscawen, Edward, Admiral 

2a3. 

Bostock, Dr. John 272. 

Boston Founded 166. 

Bouchier, Cardinal John 122. 

Bouchier, .Sir James 178. 

Boucier, John, Earl of Essex 
115. 

Boulton, Matthew 245. 

Bracton, Henry de. Judge 73. 

Bradford, William, Pilgrim 
Father 166. 

Bradshaw, John, Pres't Council 
of State 173, 176. 

Bradshaw, Henry, Chief Baron 
Exchequer 145. 

Braidwood, Thomas 2.31. 

Brandon, Charles, Duke of .Suf- 
folk 142. 

Brandon, Clarence, Duke of 
Suffolk 12.3. 

Bretagne 11. 

Brewster, William, Pilgrim 
Father 166. 

Bribery 21.3, 236. 

Brick, First used for building 
163. 

Bridge, London 40, 47, 56, 250, 
254. 

Bridge, Mcnai Straits 249. 

Bridges, Saxon 26. 

Bridgewater, Francis Egerton 
245. 

Bright, John, .Statesman 274. 

Brindlev, James, Inventor 234. 

Bristol, "Earl of 175. 

Britain, Primitive 1, 3. 

British Museum 1.54, 231, 232. 

Bronte, Anne, Charlotte, and 
Emily Jane 271. 

Brown, .Sir Thomas, Philoso- 
pher 245. 

Browning, Robert, Poet 274. 



INDEX. 



291 



Bruce, Robert 75, 78, 81. 

Brunei, Sir Mark Isambard, 
Engineer 272, 273 

Brunei, Isambard Kingdom, 
Engineer 262, 273, 281. 

Brunswick, Frederick, Duke of 
160. 

Buccleuch, Origin of Ducal 
House of 194. " 

Buckhurst, Lord, Earl of Dor- 
set 167. 

Buckhurst, Lord, Priw Coun- 
cillor to Elizabeth 156. 

Buckingham, Duke of. States- 
man, Queen Anne 215. 

Buckingham, Duke of, Admi- 
ral 135. 

Buckingham (see \'illiers). 

Buildings 71, 94, 163. 

Bun van, John 200. 

Burgh, Hugh de, Judge 73. 

Burgovne, Gen'l, Surrender of 
243. ' 

Burgundy, Duchess of 126. 

Burke, Edmund, Statesman 239, 
244. 

Burmah Revolt 268, 269. 

Burns, Robert 245. 

Burnet, Alexander 200. 

Burton, Robert, Author 167, 

Bute, James Stuart, Earl of 236, 
246. 

Butler, James, Duke of Or- 
mond 196. 

Butler, Samuel, Prelate 196. 

Bvng, George, Politician 272. 

Bvng, Sir fohn. Admiral 228, 

■2:«. 

Bvron, Lord George Gordon, 

"Poet 251. 
Byron, John, Admiral 241. 



Cabal Cabinet 196. 

Cabinet Council, modern 196, 

206. 
Cabot, John, Navigator 125. 
Cabot, Sebastian, Navigator 125, 

127, 145. 



Cade, Jack 107, 108, 109. 

Ca;sar, Julius 3, 27. 

Cairns, Sir Hugh McCalmont 
275. 

Callcott, Sir Augustus W. 272. 

Calvin, John 167. 

Cambridge, Duke of 235. 

Cambridge University 12. 

Camden, William 155". 

Campbell, Thomas, Founder 
Universitv of London 250, 
272. 

Canada 229, 231,241. 

Canals 278. 

Candles 15, 71. 

Canning, George, Prime Minis- 
ter 247, 251, 252, 257. 

Cannon 84, 100. 

Canute, Danish King 20, 21, 25. 

Caractacus, British General 4. 

Cards, Playing, introduced 89, 

Carlyle, Thomas 271. 

Carmarthen, Lord 246. 

Carnarvon, Henry Howard M. 
Earl of 275. 

Caroline of Brunswick 248, 249, 
251. 

Caroline Queen, Wi'fe of 
George II. 227. 

Carpets introduced 152. 

Carr, Robert, Viscount Roch- 
ester, Duke of Somerset 164, 
166, 167. 

Carriages (see Coaches). 

Carteret (see Granville). 

Carteret, Capt. Sir George, 
Circumnavigator 241. 

Cary, Lucius, Viscount Falk- 
land 175. 

Castles, Alnwick 40, 57; Bris- 
tol 47; Cardiff 45; Chaluz .58 
Corfe 20; Fotheringav 150 
Hereford .34; NorvVich 34, 
Nottingham 83; Pontefract 
87,89: Winchester 34; Wind- 
sor 85, 90. 
Castlereagh, Robert Stewart. 
Marquis of Londonderry 247, 
248, 251. 
Catesby, Robert, Conspirator 
162. ' 



292 



INDEX. 



Catesbv, Sir William, Speaker 
119. " 

Catharine of Aragon 123, 128, 
129. 

Catharine of France, Wife of 
Henry V. 101, 102, 104. 

Catharine Howard, Wife of 
Henry VIH 129. 

Catharine Infanta of Portugal, 
Wife of Charles II. 186. 

Catharine Parr, Wife of Henry 
Vni.130. 

Cathedrals, Canterbury 55; Lin- 
coln 52; Peterborough 51; 
Salisbury 92; St. Pauls 12, 211. 
Winchester 37, 92; Worces- 
ter 52; York 92. 

Cavaliers 172. 

Caxton, William 113, 114, 127, 
103. 

Cecil, Robert, Marquis of Salis- 
bury 275, 276. 

Cecil, William, Lord Burleigh 
156, 164. 

Cedric, King of Wessex 10, 27. 

Celt, 1. 

Chancellors, Lord (see Table 
xxvii). 

Cliandos, Sir John 86. 

Chantry, Sir Francis 245. 

Chapman, George 167. 

Charles I. 39, 160, 108 to 173, 217. 

Charles II. 168. 176, 177, 186 to 

^ 189, 193 to 195, 222. 

Charles I\\ Emperor 87. 

Charles, V'l. of France 87. 

Charles VIII. (I'.Vffable) 143. 

Charlotte, Queen of Wurtem- 
burg 235. 

Charlotte Sophia, Wife of 
George III. 235. 

Charlotte, Princess, Daughter 
of George IV. 248. 

Charter 42, 43, 66, 67, 222. 

Charter-house 86, 163. 

Charts Ocean 125. 

Chatham (see Pitt). 

Chaucer, Geoffrey 90. 

Chesterfield, Lord 242. 

Cheyalier St. George, see 
Stuart (Old Pretender.) 



Chichele, Henry, Archbishop 
105. 

Chili 151. 

Chimneys first used 64. 

Clironicle, Morning, founded 
238. 

Christians, Early 6,23, 24 

Church, Roman Catholic and 
Protestant 12, 23, 53, 71, 95, 
119, 131, 143, 157, 170, 176, 
192, 198, 203, 205, 240, 250, 
263, 267. 

Church Rates 267. 

Churches 6,25,26, 136. 

Churchill, John, Duke of Marl- 
borough 213, 215, 216, 226. 

Churchill, Lord Randolph 275, 
276. 

Cibber, Colley 215. 

Cincpie Ports 64. 

Circumnaxigator, The first 151. 

Cirencester, Richard of 101. 

Ciyil Wars 172 to 175. 

Clarkson, Thomas 272. 

Clarence, Duke of, last of the 
Warwick line 124. 

Clarence, George, Duke of, son 
of Duke of York 112, 115. 

Clarence, Lionel, Duke of, son 
of Edward 111.82. 

Clarence, Thomas, Duke of, 
.son of Henry IV. 97, 101. 

Clark, Dr. Samuel, Theologian 
220. 

Clarke, Adam, Di\ine251. 

Clayerhouse, Persecutor of 
Scotch Covenanters 191 

Claypole, fohn 178. 

CleVgy 219. 

Cleyeland, Barbara Villiers, 
Duchess of 194. 

Cliffe, Henry de 87. 

Clifford, Lord Thomas 196. 

Cliye, Lord, Goyernor of Ben- 
gal, 229, 233. 

Cloth weaving 84. 

Coaches 145, 159, 231. 

Coal 70, 219. 

"Coalition Ministry" 246. 

Cobhani, Lord John 105. 



INDEX. 



208 



Co(lrin<fton, Sir Edward, Ad- 
miral 251. 

Coftee 221. 

Coffeehouses 221. 

Coggbhalie, Ralph de 74. 

Coins, Early British 2. 

Coinage 57," 72, 141, 1G4. 

Coke, Sir Edward, Chief Jus- 
tice 175. 

Coleridge, Samuel Taylor 141. 

Colhrand, The giant 18. 

Colleges, All Souls 105; Card- 
inal afterward Christ Church 
132; Eton 108; Kings, Cam- 
bridge 108,120; Kings, Lon- 
don 250; Lincoln 110; Mans- 
field 270; Merton 94; New 
94; Phvsicians, London 1,35; 
Royal Holloway2G8; Trinity 
145; Winchester 94, 269. 

Colleges (see Table xxxii). 

Collingburn, Sir William 119. 

Collins, William 23.3. 

Columbus, Christopher 125, 127. 

Comeouters 176. 

Commerce 158, 240. 

Committee of Twenty-three, 
Interregnum 183. 

Commonwealth, The 176. 

Communists 176. 

Compass, Mariners, Invented 
76. 

Congreve, William 215. 

Conquest, Norman 23, 29. 

Conspiracies, Babington's 150; 
Lady Arabella Stewart 164; 
Cato Street 249; Old Tretend- 
er 224, 225; Popish 193; Rye- 
house 190; Scrope and Others 
104; W\arwick 140. 

Constantine, Roman Emperor 
7,27. 

Constantine, King of Scotland 
17. 

Constitutions of Clarendon 53. 

Consul, The Office Created 
118. 

Cook, James, Circumnavigator 
241, 244. 

Cooke, Richard, Classical 
Writer 145. 



Cooke, Robert Clarcnceaux, 
King-at-Arms 156. 

Cooper, Sir Aslley Paston 256. 

Copernicus, Nicolaus 138. 

Cordell, William 156. 

Corn Laws 262, 263. 

Cornwallis, General, Surrenders 
243. 

Coronation Ceremonies modi- 
fied 48. 

Corporation Act 191, 250. 

Cortez 135. 

Cospatric, Earl of Northumber- 
land 36. 

Cottiiigton, Lord Francis 175. 

Cotton, Ciiarles 200. 

Council, of State, Common- 
^vealth 176; Privy 258; Pro- 
visional 179. 

Counties, England divided in- 
to 15. 

Courcy,John de, Earl of Ulster 
68. 

Court, Chancery 35; Exchequer 
35; High Commission 126, 
149, 171' 198 ; Star-Chamber 
125, 171 (see Inns of Court). 

Courtney, Edward, Earl of 
Devonshire 146. 

Covenanters 191, 195. 

Coverdale, Bishop Miles 138. 

Cowley, Abraham 181. 

Cowper, William, Earl, States- 
man 216. 226. 

Cowper, William, Poet 245. 

Crabbe, George 255. 

Cranmer, Thomas, Archbishop 
139, 140, 144, 145. 

Crests 62, 84. 

Crichton, James (The Admir- 
able) 156. 

Cridda, King of Mercia 10, 
27. 

Crimea 264, 265. 

Crimes Bill ( Ireland) 269. 

Crimes and Punishment, Reign 
of George 111. 238. 

Cromwell, Oliver, Protector 
171, 172, 176 to 181, 189. 

Cromwell, Richard, Protector 
178, 180, 181, 183. 



294 



INDEX. 



Croinvvell, Earl, elected Kiiii^ 
of the Romans 74. 

Cromwell, Thomas, Earl of 
Essex 135, 137, 138, 139. 

Cross, Viscount, Statesman 275, 
276. 

Crowns, England and Scotland 
141, 104, 211 to 213. 

Crown jewels pledged 103. 

Cro\ land, iVhbot of 3(5. 

Cruikshank, George 272. 

Crusades 38. 39, G2, 75. 

Cudworth, Dr. Ralph 200. 

Cumberland, Henrv Frederick 
Duke of 233. 

Cumberland, Richard, Littera- 
teur 234. 

Curfew-bell 34, 43. 

Curtain Theatre 153. 



Dalr\'mple, John, \'i>count 
Stair 233. 

Dalton, John 272. 

Damsel of Hrittuuv (>cc Elea- 
nor). 

Danegelt 20, 22. 

Danes 9, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 25, 31. 

Danish Supremacy 20, 21, 22, 
23, 24. 

Darn ley. Lord 160. 

Dartmouth, Lord William, Sec- 
retary of State to Queen 
Anne 216. 

Dartmouth, Lord, Minister to 
George III. 246. 

Darwin Charles R. 271. 

Dasiiwood, .Sir Francis 246. 

Davenant, Sir William 175. 

David I. of Scotland 48. 

David IE of Scotland 79,84,85. 

Davy, Sir Humphrey 245. 

Deaf and Dumb Asylum 
Founded 231. 

Debt, National 108, 206, 225, 
236, 241. 

Dee, John 167. 

DeFoe, Daniel 226. 

Denham, Sir John 181. 

Denmark, King of 21. 



De Ruvter, Dutch Admiral 195. 

Derby," Earl of 273, 274, 275. 

Devereaux, Robert, Earl of 
Essex 146, 151, 156. 

Devonshire, Duke of. States- 
man 234. 

Dibdin, Thomas, Dramatist 272. 

Dibdin, Thomas Frognall, Bib- 
liograi^her 272. 

Diana, Temple of 12. 

Dickens, Charles 271. 

Digby, John, Earl of Bristol 175. 

Diocletian, Roman Emperor 6. 

Disraeli, Benjamin, Ear' of 
Beaconsfield 268, 271, 274, 
275. 

Disraeli, Isaac, Author 271 

Dixon, Nicholas, Baron of Ex- 
chequer 110. 

Dobson, Henrv Austin 271. 

Docks, St. Catharines 250. 

Doddridge, Dr. Piiilip 234. 

Dodsley', Robert 233. 

Domesday Book 35. 

Domestic Animals Among 
Early Britains 1. 

Donne, Dr. John 167. 

Dover 34. 

Dover, Lord 255. 

Drake, Sir Francis 151,154, 156. 

Drainage of London, early 94. 

Drama, Elizabethan 153, 154, 
157. 

Drayton, Michael 167. 

Dread Sovereign, Title of 130. 

Dress (see Living). 

Druids 3, 5. 

Drunkenness 277, 278. 

Durer, Albert 1,38. 

Dryden, John, Poet 196. 

Drvden, lohn. Son of Poet 209. 

Duels 221. 

Ducking stool 221. 

Dudley, Edmund, Political 
Agent Henry VII. 124, 127. 

Dudley, Lord Guilford, Hus- 
band Lady Jane Grey 142. 

Dudley, John, Duke of North- 
umberland, Lord High Ad- 
miral 145. 

Dudley, Earl, Statesman 252. 



INDEX. 



295 



Dudley, Robert, Earl of Leices- 
ter 156. 

Dugdale, Sir William 181. 

Duke, Title First Conferred 85. 

Duncan, King of Scotland 23. 

Dundas, Henrv, Viscount Mel- 
ville 247, 279. 

Duns Scotus, Johannes 78. 

Dunstan, St. 19,27. 



Earl, Title Created 11. 

Earldoms ,'J5. 

Earthenware Introduced 80. 

Earthquakes 2;}1, 204. 

East Anglia 10. 

Ecclesiastical Commission of 
James II. 20;5. 

Eddvstone Lighthouse 214 

Edgar, The Peaceable 19. 

Edgeuorth, Maria 272. 

Editha, Wife of Edward the 
Confessor 22. 

Edmund I. Son of Edward the 
Elder 17, 18, 19. 

PZdmund II. (Ironsides) 21. 

Edmund, Earl of Lancaster, 
Son of Henry III. 69, 70. 

Edred, Son of Edward the El- 
der 19. 

Edric, Saxon Duke 21. 

Education Bill 254. 

Education of Women 268. 

Edward I. (The Elder) 17. - 

Edward II. (The Martyr) 20. 

Edward III. (The Confessor) 
22, 2'}. 

Edward I. "After the Con- 
quest " 69. 74. 

Edward II. 74, 79. 

Edward III. 79, 81 

Edward IV. 111. 

Edward V. Ill, 115. 

Edward VI. l.'iO. i;«). 

Edward, Duke of Kent, Son of 
George III. 235,257. 

Edward, The Black Prince 82, 
85, 86. 

Edward, Son of Richard III. 
117, 119. 



Edward, Son of Henry VI. 106. 
Edwin, Saxon Earl 36. 
Edwv, Son of Edward the El- 
der 19. 
Egbert, First King of England 

l2, 13. 
Egremont, Sir Charles 246. 
Eleanor, " Damsel of Brittanv" 

65. 
Eleanor, Daughter Edward I. 

74. 
Eleanor, Daughter Edward II. 

79. 
Eleanor, Daughter llenr\ II. 

52. 
Eleanor, Daughter of John (53. 
Eleanor of Aquitainc 52, 63. 
Eleanor of Castile 74, 76, 77, 79. 
Eleanor of Pro\ence 69, 78. 
Electricity 254, 281,282. 
Eldon, Lf)rd 247, 25.5. 
Elfrida, Plots the Assassination 

of her Stepson Edward 11.20. 
Elgiva, Wife of Edwy 19. 
Elizabeth, Daughter of Charles 

I. 168. 
Elizabeth, Wife of Henry VII. 

Ill, 117, 122. 
Elizabeth, Queen 129, 1.30, 146, 

147, 148. 
Elizabeth, Daughter of James 

I. 160. . , 

Elizabeth, Daughter of George 

III. 23.5. 
Elizabeth of France, \V'ife of 

Richard II. 101. 
Ella or Eli, King of .Sussex 10, 

27. 
Ellenborough, Lord 2.56. 
Eliot (see Evans). 
Kmanciii.'ition Act 2,50. 
Emma, Wife of Ethelred II. 20, 

22. 
Empress of India, The Title 26S. 
Empson, .Sir Richard 124, 127. 
England, Name 9, 10. 
English or Episcopal Church 

(see Church). 
Erasinus, Deciderius 135, 138. 
Eboracum, Roman Name for 

York 27. 



296 



INDEX. 



Ercenwin or Erchenwin. King 

of East Saxony. 10. 27. 
Ernest Augustus, Duke of 

Brunswick, Father George I. 
160, 223. 
Ernest, Duke of Cumberland, 

Son of George III. 235. 
Erskine, Lord 247. 
Essex, Earl of, Minister Charles 

II. 196. 
Essex, Earl of, Parlianientarv 

General 172. 
Essex, Earl of. Minister of 

Elizabeth 146, 151, 156. 
Este, Mary Beatrice Wife of 

lames if. 197. 
Es'trange, Sir R. L' 192. 
Ethelbald, Son of Egbert 13. 
Ethelbert, Brother of Alfred 13, 

17. 
Ethelbert, King of Kent 11. 
Ethelred I., Son of Egbert 13. 
Ethelred II. (The Unready) 20. 
Ethelwald (The Monk) Son of 

Alfred 17. 
Ethelwald, Son of Ethelbert 17. 
Ethehvolf, Son of Egbert 13. 
Eustace, Son of Stephen of 

Blois 46. 
Eustace, Count of Boulogne 46. 
Evacuation of England bv the 

Romans 8. 
E\ans, Marion C. (George 

Eliot) 271. 
Evelyn, John, Diarist 209. 
Everdon W. de. Baron of Ex- 
chequer 81. 
Exclusion Act (Against James) 

190. 
Exhibition, Colonial 268. 
Exhibition, Indian 268. 
Exhibition, The Great London, 

1851 264. 
Exmouth, \'iscount. Admiral 



Fairfax, Lord Thomas, Parlia- 
mentary General 172, 176, 181. 

Famine in Reign of Edward II. 
80. 



Farr, John, Earl of Westmore- 
land 247. 
Farquhar, George 215. 
Faulconbridge, \'iscount 178. 
Fawkes, Guv 162, 167. 
Ferdinand I'll, of Castile 74. 
F\-versham, Earl of 200. 
Feudal Svstem 26. 118. 
Fielding," Henry 234. 
Firearms 158. 
Fire of London 189, 190. 
Fisher, John, Cardinal 133, 138. 
Fisheries Treaty 270. 
Fitz Allen, Earfof Arundel 145. 
Fitz Osbern, William 31. 
Fitz Osbert, \\'iiliani. Executed 

for Treason 63. 
Fitzroy, Henry Duke of Graf- 
ton 246. 
Fitzurze, Reginald 55. 
Fitz Walter, Hugh, Archbishop 

68. 
Fitz Walter, Robert, General of 

the Barons' Arm^- 68. 
Five Burghers (Danes) 17. 
Five Mile Act 191. 
Flamstead, John 208. 
Flax 1J5. 

Flaxman, John 245. 
Fleetwood, Charles 178, 181. 
Fleming, Robert, Prelate 115 
Fleniming, Bishop Richard, 

Founder of Lincoln College 

110. 
Fletcher, John 155. 
Florida 231. 
Foote, Samuel 245. 
Ford, John 155. 

Fortescue, Sir John, Judge 115. 
Foster, John 272. 
Fox, Charles James, Statesman 

239, 244, 247. 
Fox, George, Quaker 181. 
Fox, Henry, Lord Holland 231. 
France, Crown of 83, 102, 103. 
Francis, Sir Philip 236. 
Freemen or Ceorls 18. 
Frederick, Duke of York, Son 

of George III. 235. 
Frederick II. of Denmark 160. 
Frederick III. of Denmark 210, 



INDEX. 



297 



Frederick, King of Bohemia 

160. 
Frederick, Prince of Wales, 

Son of George II. 227, 235. 
Frederick William, King of 

Prussia 223. 
Froissart, Jean 90. 
Frowvk, Tiiomas, Chief Justice 

12?: 

Fry, Mrs. Elizabeth 272. 
Fuller, Thomas 181. 
Fulton, Robert 279. 



G 



Gainsborough, Thomas R. A. 

245. 
Gait, John 255. 
Gam, David, Knighted at Agin- 

court 105. 
Gama, \'asco de, Discoverer of 

Sea Passage to India 125. 
Game Laws, Under William I. 

and II. 37. 
Gambling 242. 
Gardiner, Bishop Stephen 1.39, 

145, 146. 
Garrick, David 245. 
Garter Oriier Created 84. 
Gas Illuminating 238, 249, 279. 
Gascoigne, Sir Crisp, Lord 

Mayor London 231. 
Gascoigne, Sir William, Lord 

Chief Justice 101. 
Gaveston, Pierre 81. 
Gaunt, or Ghent, John of 82, 90, 

122. 
Gay, John 226. 
Gazette, The London 19,3. 
Genealogy of English Sover- 
eigns, Table XII. 
Geoffrey of Anjou 42, 52. 
Geoffrey, Son of Henry II. 52. 
Geoffrey of Monmouth 49. 
George I. 223, 277. 
George 11.22.3.227,277. 
George III. 235, 238, 277. 
George IV. 1'3'), 248. 
George, Prince of Denmark 

210. 



George, Son of Queen Anne 
210. 

Georges St. Chapel Windsor 
120, 188. 

Germain, Lord St. 246. 

Gervais of Tilberry 68. 

Gibbon, Edward 245. 

Gibraltar, see Battles — . 

Giddas, Historian 27. 

Giffard, Bishop Walter 78. 

Gilbert, Earl of Pembroke 73. 

Gioia, Flavio, Inventor Marin- 
er's Compass 76. 

Gladstone, William E. States- 
man 267, 274, 275, 276. 

Glass 25, 56, 145, 152. 

Glendower, Owen, Welsh 
Chieftain 100. 

Globe Theater 1,53. 

Gloucester, Duke of, Son of 
Charles I. 168. 

Gloucester, Duke of. Son of 
Henry IV. 97, 109. 

Gloucester, Duke of After- 
ward Richard III. 106, 115, 
116. 

Gloucester, Robert de 7,3. 

Goderich, \^iscount 252. 

Godfrey of Boulogne, Crusader 
41. 

Godfrey, Sir Edmunberry, 
Magistrate 19.3. 

Godoiphin, Earl of 209, 215. 

Godwin, Earl of Kent 22, 23, 40. 

Godwin, William, Political 
Economist 255. 

Goldsmith, Oliver 245. 

Good Hope, Cape of, First 
Doubled 12.5. 

Good, Dr. John Mason 251. 

Goodwin, Sands 40. 

Gordon, Lord George 237, 238. 

Gordon (see Aberdeen). 

Gosse, Edmund W. 271. 

Goschen, George J. 276. 

Goths 7. 

Goulburn, Henry 256, 274. 

Gower (see Granville). 

Gower, John, Poet 90. 

Gower, Lord John, Statesman 
246. 



298 



INDEX. 



Grant, Charles 252. 

Grafton, Origin of Ducal House 
of 193. 

Graham, Sir James Robert 
George 256, 274. 

Graham, James, Marquis of 
Montrose 177, 181. 

Grantham, Fletcher Nortf)n 21G. 

Granville, Earl 274, 275, 27G. 

Gran\ illc, John Cartaret, States- 
man 2-'}4. 

Gran\ille, Ranulph de, Cru- 
sader 58 

Grapes Introduced 141. 

(irav, Thomas 2'.V,i. 

Greece 250. 

Greek, First Taught in England 
135. 

Greene, Robert 155. 

Gregorian Calendar adopted 
228. 

Gregory I. 11. 

Gren\ille, George, Statesman, 
240. 

Grenville, William Wvndham, 
Minister George III. "240, 247. 

(ircsham. Sir Thomas 153, 150. 

Grey, Charles llowick, 247,253, 

Grev, Elizabeth Woodville,\Vife 
of Edward IV. Ill, 115. 

Grey, Lady Jane 144. 

Grimstone, Sir Harbottle 184. 

Guildhall 101, 103. 

Guilds <)4. 

Gunpowder 120. 

Gunpowder-plot 102. 

Gustavus I. of Sweden 138. 

Guthrum or Guntrum, Danish 
General 14, 27. 

Gwynne, Nell 194, 195. 

H 

Habeas-corpus Act 190. 
Habits of People (see Living). 
Haddington, Earl of 274. 
Hadrian (see Adrian.) 
Hale, Sir Matthew 181. 
Halifax (see Montague). 
Hall, Bishop Joseph 175. 
Hall, Robert," Divine 251. 



Hallev, Edmund, Astronomer, 

234: 
Halle\-, Ilenrv, Norman Law- 

ver'30. 
Halsbury, Lord 275, 270. 
Hamilton, Dean William de, 

Lord Chancellor 78. 
Hampden, John 109, 172, 175. 
Hampton Court Palace 130. 
Hanover, House of 223. 
Han way, Jonas 221. 
Harcourt,"Sir W. 275, 270. 
Hardicanute, Son of Canute 22. 
Harding, .Sir Henrv, Statesman, 

252. 
Harding, John, Chronicler 115. 
Hare, Sir Nicholas 140. 
Ilartleur 104 (see Naval Engage- 
ments Table xxii). 
Hargreave, James 242, 278. 
Harlev, Robert, Earl of Oxford, 

215," 210. 
Harold I. (llarefoot) 22. 
Harold II. Last Saxon King 23, 

30, 30. 
Harrington, Earl of 231. 
HaiMison, John, Parliamentary 

General," 182. 
Harrowby, Lord 247, 248. 
Hai-tington, Mareiuis of 275. 
Ilarvev, Sir Milliam 105, 107. 
Hasclrig, Charles, 172. 
Hastings, Danish Naval Com- 

mandei" 10. 
Hastings, Warren, Governor 

India 238. 
Hastings 23, 34. 
Hastings (see Battles). 
Havana 243. 
Hawke, Lord Edward, Admiral 

233. 
Hawkesbury, Lord 247. 
Hawkins, Sir John 154. 
Havdon, Benj. Robert 272. 
Ileathcote, Sir Gilbert 231. 
Heber, Bishop Reginald 245. 
Helena, Princess 201. 
Hemans, Felicia Dorothea 255. 
Hengist, Saxon Chief 9, 10, 27. 
Henrietta, Wife of Charles I. 

168. 



INDEX. 



299 



Henrietta, Daughter Charles I. 
168. 

Henry I. (Beauclerk) 29, 41, 42, 
45. 

Henry II. 47, 52, 53, 55 to 57. 

Henrv 111.63,69,70, 72,74. 

Henry IV. 97 to 99. 

Henry V. 97, 101, 102, 104, 105, 
270. 

Henry VI. 101, 106, 107. 

Henry VII. 122 to 125. 

Henry VIII. 122, 128 to 131, 157. 

Henry IV. of P>ance 168. 

Henry V. Emperor of Germany, 
42. 

Henry, Duke of Gloucester, Son 
Charles I. 168. 

Henry, Duke of Sa\ony 52. 

Henrv, Son of Henry II. 52, 
56." 

Henry, Son of James I. 160. 

Henry of Huntington, Chron- 
icler 49. 

Henrv, Robert, Historian 245. 

Heptarchy, Saxon 10,12. 

Herbert, Algernon, Historian, 
274. 

Herbert, Lord Edward, Philoso- 
pher, 167. 

Herbert, William, Earl of Pem- 
broke 167. 

Hereditarv Legislation 270- 

Hereford," Duke of 88, 89. 

Hereward or Herewald le Wake 
32, 34. 

Herrick, Robert, 181. 

Herries, John Charles 252. . 

Herschel, Caroline Lucretia272. 

Herschcl, Sir J.F. W., Astrono- 
mer 245. 

Herschel, Lord, Statesman, 276. 

Hertford (see Seymour). 

Hervey, James 233- 

Hesse-Homberg, Prince of 235. 

High Commission Court 126, 
149, 171, 198. 

Higham, Clement, Chief Baron 
Exchequer 146. 

Hill, Rowland 261. 

Hill, Lord Richard 246. 

Hillsborough, Earl of 246. 



Historical Memoranda : An- 
gevins or Plantagenet 90; 
Hanover 277; Lancaster and 
York 119; Norman 49; Saxon 
and Dane 23; Stuart 216; 
Tudor 157. 

History of the World, Raleigh 
165. 

Hobbes, Thomas 181. 

Hobhouse, Sir [ohn C. 256. 

Hogarth Williani 230, 234. 

Hogg, James 255. 

Holborn, first paved 103. 

Holland, Lord 256. 

Holies, Thomas Pelham, Duke 
of Newcastle 228, 2.34. 

HoUinshed Raphael 1-56. 

Ilollis, Patriot 172. 

Holmby House, Ciiarles I. con- 
fined there 173. 

Honorius, Roman Emperor 8. 

Hood, Robin, Outlaw 91. 

Hood, Tliomas, Poet 272. 

Hooke, Theodore Edward, 272. 

Hooker, Bishop Richard 156. 

Hooper, Bishop John 145. 

Hops, L^^sed for brewing 154. 

Horsa, Saxon Chief 9, 27. 

Horslev, Bisliop Samuel 245. 

Hose, Geoffrey, Judge 63. 

Hospitals: Bartholomew 141; 
Chelsea 208; Christ Church 
141; Foundling 232; Green- 
wich 208; St.Thomas 141,267. 

Hospitalers, Knights 93. 

Houses of Parliament 254,262. 

House of Commons 84, 90. 

House of Hanover 223. 

House of Lancaster 82, 97. 

House of Stuart 160. 

House of York 82, 111. 

Howard, Catharine, Wife Henry 
VIII. 129. 

Howard, Henrv, Earl of Surrey 
136, 138, 139'. 

Howard, Sir James, Admiral 
135. 

Howard, John, Duke of Norfolk, 
Diplomate 119. 

Howard, John, Philanthropist 
245. 



300 



INDEX. 



Howard, Lord, Admiral 154. 

Howard, Thomas, Earl Arun- 
del 175. 

Howard, Thomas, Duke of Nor- 
folk 139. 

Howe, Elias Jr. 281. 

llowick (see Grej). 

Huguenots 171. 

Hughes, Peggy 192. 

Hume, David 215. 

Humphrey, Duke of Beaufort, 
Chief Counselor of Henrv \'. 
lOG. 

Humphrey, Duke of Glouces- 
ter 97. 

Humphrey, Earl of Hereford 97. 

Huns, The 7. 

Hunter, Dr. John 245. 

Huskisson, William 251, 252. 

Muss, John 105. 

Hutchins, Sir George 209. 

Hutton, Charles 245. 

Huxley, Thomas H. 271. 

Hvde, Anne, First Wife James 
11. 197. 

Hvde, Edward, Earl of Claren- 
don 181, 196, 197. 

Hyde, Thomas, de la. Judge 81. 



I 



Ida, or Idda, King of Northiun- 
bria 10, 27. 

Iddesley, Eord, ISIinister of 
Victoria 270. 

Indemnity Act 189. 

India 141," 151, 154, 1G3, 218, 225, 
229, 231, 242, 254, 262, 265. 

India (see Table xviii.) 

Indies, West 125. 

Ingulphus, Historian 36. 

Innocent III., Pope 6.5, 06. 

Inns of Court, Ciray's 153; Lin- 
coln's 127; Staple 103; Mid- 
dle Temple 85, 153. 

Insurrections Reign W^illiam I. 
31; Henry I. Barons 44; John, 
Barons 66, 67; Henry III. 
Barons 72, 73; Lancaster 
(1322) 81; Wat Tyler (1381) 
88; Jack Cade (1450) 107; 



Warwick (1461^) 112; War- 
beck (1499) 126, 127; Irish 
(1599)151; Jacobite (1715)224. 

Interregnum 183. 

Invasions 3, 4, 9, 13, 14, 16, 17, 
IS, 20, 21, 31, 39, 40, 48, 72, 
100, 191, 206, 224, 225. 

Ireland 57, 1.51, 166, 176, 205, 
240, 262, 269. 

Ircton, Henry, Parliamentary 
General 178, 181,189. 

Iron, Early Mention of 2. 

Ironsides 172, 176. 

Irving, Henry 274. 

Isabella, Wife of Edward II. 79 
to 81. 

Isabella Wife of King John 63. 

Isabella, Second Wife of Rich- 
ard 11.87. 

Italian Fashions, Influence of 
152. 



Jackson, Andrew, American 
General 241. 

lackson, W. S., Minister 276. 

Jacobites 204, 224. 

lames I. 160 to 165, 223. 

"lames II. 168,197 to 199,204, 
205, 207, 217. 

James I. of Scotland 216. 

"James II. of Scotland 216. 

"lames III. of Scotland 216. 

James IV. of Scotland 123, 137, 
160, 216. 

James V. of Scotland 137, 216. 

James, Francis Edward (Old 
Pretender) 197. 217, 224, 225. 

James, Duke of Monmoi;th 200. 

Jane, Daughter of Edward II. 
79. 

Jane, Daughter of King John 63. 

Jane, or Joan, Wife of Henry 
IV. 97. 

Jansen Z. Inventor of the tele- 
scope 153. 

Jeffreys, Judge 200, 201, 221. 

Jenkins, Henry 195. 

Jenkinson, Charles, Earl of Liv- 
erpool 247, 248, 251. 



INDEX. 



301 



Jenkinson, Robert Banks, Earl 

of Liverpool 251, 252. 
Jenner, Dr. E. Discoverer of 

Vaccination 251. 
Jerome of Prague 105. 
Jersev, Island of 34. 
Jerusalem Chamber 98. 
Jesuits 137. 
Jews 33, 60, 76, 176. 
Joan of Arc 107, 109. 
Joan, Daughter llenrv II. 52. 
Joan (Fair Maid of Kent) 86, 

87. 
Joan (see Jane). 
John, Henry St. Viscount Bol- 

ingbrokc 216, 225. 
John, Duke of Bedford, Son of 

Hcnrj IV. 97, 105. 
John, Son of Edward II. 79. 
John, Son of Hcnrv 11.52,63, 

64, 67. 
John IV. of Portugal 186. 
John Frederick, Margrave of 

Anspach 227. 
John of Gaunt 82, 90, 122. 
John, King of France 84. 
Johnson, Dr. Samuel 245. 
Jones, Inigo, Architect 127, 167, 

217. 
Jones, Sir William, Orientalist 

245. 
Jonson, Ben 175, 217. 
Journal of Parliamentary Pro- 
ceedings 162. 
Jubilee S'ear 269. 
Judith, Wife of Ethehvolf 27. 
Junius Letters of 236. 
Jury, Trial by 57. 



K 

Kean, Edmund, Actor 255. 

Keats, John, Poet 245. 

Keith, Viscount George, Ad- 
miral 255. 

Kemble, John Philip 245. 

Kepler, Johann 217. 

Kett, William 142. 

Kimberh', John Wodchouse, 
Earl 275, 2"76. 



King, Danish 20, 21, 22; Eng- 
lish 12; of France, Title As- 
sumed bv the English 84; 
Saxon 10 et seq. 

Kingmaker, Warwick, the 112, 
115. 

King's Evil, first touched for 22. 

Kirk, Col. Percy 200. 

Kirkby, Thomas 115. 

Knights, Norman 51. 

Knights Hospitalers 93. 

Knights Templars 44,46, 56, 80, 
85, 93. 

Knives, 153. 

Kno.x, Jolin 156. 



Lamb, Charles 141, 255. 
Lamb, William, Viscount Mel- 
bourne 253, 256, 262, 263, 273, 

274. 
Lambert, John 182, 184. 
Lambeth Palace 166. 
Lancaster, Henr\ ,Earl of, Prime 

Minister of Edward II. 81. 
Lancaster, Thomas, Duke of 

Clarence 97. 
Lancaster, House of 82, 95, 97. 
Land Grants by William the 

Conqueror 32 to 35. 
Landon, Letitia E. 255. 
Lane, .Sir Ralph, Governor of 

\'irginia 151. 
Lanfranc, Bishop 38. 
Lang, Andrew 271. 
Langton, Stephen, Archbishop 

65, 68. 
Language 50, 95, 163. 
Lansdowne, Marquis of 256, 257. 
Lanterns, Magic 71. 
Latimer, Bishop Hugh 143,145. 
Latimer,Lord, Husband of Cath- 
arine Parr 130. 
Laud, Archbishop 170, 171, 175. 
Lauderdale (see Maitland). 
Law, John 226. 
Lawrence, Sir Thomas, 251. 
Laws 15, 118, 123, 236, 254. 
Leaden condiuts 136. 
Leeds, Duke of 247. 



302 



INDEX. 



Legge, Heneage 234. 

Leicester, Robert Dudley, Earl 
of 156. 

Leicester, William, Earl of 272. 

Leland, John, Antiquarian 138. 

Leoif, Assassin of Edmund L 
19. 

Leopold (le Beau) G3. 

Leopold, Prince 2C1. 

Levellers 176. 

Libraries: Bodleian 151; Brit- 
ish Museum 231; Cambridge 
118; Lambeth 166;F>ee285. 

Liddon, Canon 271. 

Lighthouses 214, 232. 

Linacre, Dr. Thomas 135. 

Lincoln, Abraham 266. 

Lincoln's Inn 127. 

Lingard, John 273. 

Linnean Society founded 238. 

Lionel, Duke of Clarence 82. 

Literature 16, 135, 136,'148, 157, 
217, 218, 219, 232, 241. 

Lithography 281. 

Littleton, Frances, Judge 115. 

Liturgy, The Ciuirch 140. 

Liverpool, Charles Jenkinson, 
Earl of 247, 248, 251. 

Li\erpool, Robert Jenkinson, 
Earl of 251, 252. 

Li\ing: Habits, Manners, Dress, 
etc., of the People 3. 26, 89.91 
to 93, 103, 117. 137, 152. 1.58, 
159. 193, 219, 221. 229, 2.30,242. 

Llewellyn, Prince of Wales 78. 

Locke, John, Philosopher 217. 

Locomotives, .Steam 250, 255. 

Logarithms 163. 

Lollards, The 80, 125. 

Lombard Merchants 77. 

London 5, 7, 31, 50, 94. 

Londonderry 166. 

Lords, Hous'e of 176. 

Lotteries 207. 

Loudon, John C, Botanist 272. 

Loughborough, Lord 247. 

Louise, Princess 261. 

Louis II. of France 54. 

Louis XII. of France 123. 127. 

Louis XIV. of France 192, 205, 
207. 



Louis of Hesse Darmstadt, 

Prince 266. 
Louvain, Godfrey, Duke of 41. 
Lovel, Francis 128. 
Lovel, Thomas, Speaker 119. 
Loyola, Ignatius 1.37. 
Ludlow, Edmund 182. 
Luther, Martin 1.38. 
Lutheran Doctrines 134. 
Luttrell, Col. 'j37. 
Lyndhurst, Lord 252, 256. 

M 

M acadam, John Loudon 255 
256. 

Macaulav, T. Babington 271. 

Macbeth" 23. 

Maclean, Roderick, Attempts to 
kill Queen Victoria 268. 

Mackintosh, Sir James 255. 

Macklin, Dramatist 238. 

Magazines 2.32, 241. 

Magic Lanterns 71. 

Magna Charta 66, 67, 70, 77, 120, 
169. 

Magnus, King of Norway .39. 

Maitland, John, Duke of Lau- 
derdale 196. 

Malcolm III. of Scotland 41. 

Malcolm, Sir John 25.5. 

Malmesliurv, William of .32, 49. 

Mandeville," Sir John 86, 94. 

Manhiil Dr. Gid'eon A. 27.3. 

Mannv, Sir Walter 86. 

Mansfield, Albert, Earl of 146. 

Mansfield, William Murray, 
Earl of 240. 

Mansion House 2.31. 

Mant, Richard, Irish Prelate 272. 

Maps 125. 

March (see Mortimer). 

Margaret of Anjou 106, 114, 115. 

Margaret of Beaufort, Mother 
of"^Henry VII. 122, 127. 

Margaret, "Daughter Henry VII. 
122, 123, 124,160. 

Margaret, Daughter Henry 
HI. 69. 

Margaret, Second Wife of Ed- 
ward I. 74. 



INDEX. 



303 



Marlborough, John Churchill, 

Duke of '211, 213, 215, 226. 
Marlow, ChristophLM- 155. 
Marvel, Andrew 200. 
Marv, de Bohun, Wife of Henry 

IV. 97. 
Marv, Queen, Wife of William 

III. 1G8, 199, 201. 
Marv, Daughter of James II. 

197. 
Marv, Daughter of Henrv VII. 

122, 123. 
Mary I., Daughter of Henrv 

Vill. 130, 143. 
Mary, Daughter of George III. 

235. 
Mary, Queen of Scots 149, 216. 
Marv Louisa Victoria, Motlier 

of' Queen Victoria 257, 2G6. 
Maryland 174. 
Martyrs, First Christian 6. 
Martyrs, First burned 99, 101. 
Martyr, Justin, Christian Ajiol- 

ogfst 27. 
Masonry, Stone 25. 
Masques 217. 
Massachusetts 166, 174. 
Massacres: Danes 20; Jews 60; 

Northumbrians .32; Welsh 

Bards 75. 
Massinger, Philip 1.5.5. 
Matches Lucifer 254. 
Matilda, Wife of William I. 29, 

36, 39. 
Matilda, Wife of Henry 1.41, 

46. 
Matilda, Wife of Henry V. 42, 

47, 58. 
Matilda, Wife of Stephen of 

Blois 46. 
Matthews, Henrv, Statesman 

276. 
Maud, Daughter of Henrv II. 

52. 
Mayflower, The 166, 174. 
Mayor, Lord of London 108 
Medina-Sidonia, Duke of 154. 
Melbourne, (see Lamb) 
Melville, Robert, Viscount 252. 
Melville, Henrv Dundas, Vis- 
count 247, 279. 



Menai Straits Bridge 249. 
Methodists 230. 

Meyrick, Sir Samuel Rust 272. 
Mexico, Conquered by Cortez 

135. 
Microscopes, Solar 232. 
Middleton, Sir Hugh, Engineer 

167. 
Milton, John, 176, 181. 
Ministry Caliinet 206. 
Mitford, William, Historian 251. 
Monasteries 11, 51, 133, 134. 
Monk, General 181, 184. 
Monmouth, Origin of The 

Ducal House of 194. 
Monmouth, James, Duke of 200. 
Monopolies Granted bv Charles 

I. 170. 

Montacute, John, Earl of Salis- 
bury 101. 

Montagu, Charles, Earl of Hali- 
fax 209. 

Montague, Edward, Earl of 
Sandwich 184. 

Montague, Lady Marv Wort- 
ley 234, 277. 

Monteagle, William Parker, 
Discoverer of the Gunpow- 
der Plot 167. 

Montcalm, General 229. 

Montford, Simon de, Earl of 
Leicester 63, 72. 

Montrose, James Graham, Mar- 
quis of 177, 181. 

Moore, Mrs. Hannah, Authoress 
255. 

Moore Thomas 273. 

Morals of the Court of Ciiarles 

II. 193. 

Morals, Reign of George II. 

229, 230. 
Mordaunt, Charles, Earl of 

Peterborough 215. 
More, Sir Thomas 133, 138. 
Morea, Saxon Earl 36. 
Morenic, Hugh de 63. 
Morgan, Sir Richard 145. 
Morley, John, Statesman 276. 
Mortinier, Edmund, Earl of 

March 97, 100. 



304 



INDEX. 



Mortimer, Edmund Roger, 

Earl of March 89. 
Mortimer, Roger, Earl of 

Mareh, Paramour of Queen 

Isabella 79, 80, 81, 83. 
Morville, Hugh de. One of 

Becket'.s Assassins 55. 
Mowbray, Robert de. Founder 

of the Percy Family 40. 
Moxson, John 209. 
Mulgrave, Earl, Statesman 247. 
Municipal Corporation Act 254. 
Murray, .Sir George 252, 256. 
Museum, Ashmole 209. 
Museum, British 154, 231, 232. 
Mutiny, Indian, Table xviii. 

N 

Napier, Sir Charles 273. 
Na]iier, Sir Charles James 273. 
Napier, Sir George Thomas, 

Governor Cape (Jood Hope 

273. 
Napier, or Neper, John, Invent- 
or of Logarithms 163. 
Napier, Rot)ert, Viscount Mag- 
da la 207. 
Napier, Robert, Noted Ship 

Builder 273. 
Napier, .Sir William Francis, 

Historian 273. 
Napoleon I. Bonaparte 240, 241, 

242. 
National Debt 108, 225, 241. 
National Gallery of Art 250. 
Naval Engagements, Table 

xxii. 
Navigation 15, 255, 283. 
Navv 15, 103, 150, 151, 158, 200, 

218, 240, 243, 244, 271, 279. 
Neville, Anne, (see Anne of 

Warwick.) 
Neville, Richard, Earl of, 

(Kingmaker) 112, 115. 
Newcastle, John Holies, Duke 

of 216. 
Newcastle, Thomas Pelham 

Holies, Duke of, Statesman 

228, 234. 
New Forest 34. 



Newfoimdland 125. 
Newman, Cardinal 263. 
Newspapers 153, 154, 171, 192, 

214, 232, 237, 238, 285. 
Newspaper Stamps 211. 
New River 167. 
New vStvIe for Computing 

Time 228. 
Newton, Sir Isaac 217, 226, 245. 
New York Ceded to England 

195 
Nightingale, Florence 265. 
Nonconformists (see Church 

and Religion). 
Norfolk, John Howard, Duke 

of 88. 
Norfolk, Thomas Howard, 

Duke of, .Statesman 1.35. 
Norman, fohn. Lord Mavor of 

London 108. 
Normandv 30,40, 45, 104. 
Normans 20, 29, 49, 50. 
North, Lord Fredeiick, Earl of 

Guilford 246. 
Northcote, Sir Stafford 275. 
Northmen 2.5, 39. 
Northumberland, Duke of, 

Statesman, James I. 167. 
Northumberland, Duke of, 

.Statesman, \'icloria 273, 274. 
Northumberland, Cospatric, 

Earl of .36. 
Northumberland, Earl of (Hot- 
spur) 100. 
Northumberland, John Dudlev, 

Duke of 145. 
Northumberland, John, Duke 

of. Lord Chancellor 142. 
Northumbrian Massacre 32. 
Norway Conquered by Canute 

21. 
Norwegians 25. 
Nottingham, Robert, Earl of, 

100. "^ 
Nova Scotia 2.31. 



Gates, Titus 193. 
Observatorv Cambridge 250. 



INDEX. 



305 



Ocean Cable Laid 28"2. 

Odo, Bishop of Bayeaux 31, 3G, 

40. 
O'Hedian Bishop 119. 
Oldcastle, Sir Tohn 105. 
Olnev Island 21. 
Orford (see Russell and Wal- 

pole). 
Osberga, Wife of Ethelwolf 13. 
Osborne Thomas, Duke of 

Leeds 196. 
Osborne, Thomas, Earl of Dan- 

bj 19G. 
Osburn or Osbern, Bishop of 

Exeter 46. 
Otho of Bavaria, King of 

Greece 250. 
Otvvav, Thomas, Dramatist 181. 
Otwav, Bishop 200. 
Overburv, Sir Thomas 164. 
Oxford ("see Harlev). 



Pagano, Hugh de. Founder of 
the Order of Knights Tem- 
plars 46. 

Pakenhani, General 241. 

Palaces: HamYjton Court 1.36; 
Lambeth 166; St. James 136; 
Westminster 89; Whitehall 
136. 

Palev, Dr. William 233. 

Palmerston, Lord, Statesman, 
247, 256, 266, 267, 274, 275. 

Pantulph, Hugh dc 68. 

Paper-making 76, 153, 214. 

Paris, Allies in 241. 

Paris, Matthew, Historian 73. 

Park, Mungo, Explorer 244. 

Park, St. James 136, 192. 

Park, Woodstock 44. 

Parker, Matthew, Archbishop 
146. 

Parliamentary records 162. 

Parnell, Thoiiias, Poet 226. 

Parr, Catherine, Wife Henry 
VnL130, 142. 

Parr, Samuel, Author 245. 

Parrott, Sir John 152. 

Paterson, William 220. 



Paul's St. Cathedral 12, 190,214. 
Pearson, Charles, Projector of 

Underground Railway 280. 
Peel, Sir^Robert, Statesman 252, 

256, 262, 264, 273, 274. 
Peer, Title bestowed by patent 

89. 
Pelham, Sir Henry 234. 
Pembroke, Gilbert, Earl of 69, 

73. 
Pembroke, Thomas, Earl of, 

Statesman 215. 
Penn, Sir William 181. 
Penny-post 193, 261. 
Pepys, Samuel 195. 
Perceval, Spencer 241, 247. 
Percv, Family Name 41. 
Percv's Rebellion 100. 
Peru 1.35, 151. 
Pestilence 84. 
Peter the Great 207. 
Peter the Hermit 39, 41. 
Peters-pence 13. 
Philip I. of France 30. 
Philip n. 65, 68. 

Philip nr. 74. 

Philip IV. 76. 79. 
Philip of Valois 83, 84. 
Philip II. of Spain 14.3, 154. 
Philippe, King Louis of France 

263, 264. 
Phillippa, Daughter Henrv IV. 

97, 
Phillippa, Wife Edward III. 82, 

92. 
Philpot, John, Archdeacon, 145. 
Photographs 280. 
Picts 6, 9. 
Picts-wall 27 
Pilborough, John, Baron of the 

Exchequer 142. 
Pilgrims 166, 174. 
Pillory 221. 
Pin-money 137. 
Pins 136 ' 
Pitt, William, Earl of Chatham 

228, 2.33, 234. 
Pitt, William, Earl of Chatham 

(The Younger) 239, 240, 244, 

246, 247. 
Pius IX. Pope 263. 



306 



INDEX. 



Pizarro, Conqueror of Peru 135. 
Plague in London 100, 113, 189. 
Plantagenet, Name of 52. 
Plantagenet, Edmund, Earl of 

Kent 87. 
Plantagenet, Edmund, Duke of 

York 90. 
Plantagenet, Edward, Earl of 

Warwick 1"24, 127. 
Plantagenet, John, Duke of Bed- 

foid'l09. 
Plantagenet, Richard, Duke of 

York 110. 
Plantagenet, Thomas, Duke of 

(iioucester 87, 88, 90. 
Plunket, Eord 273. 
Plymouth Colony 16G, 174. 
Poet, First British 28. 
Pole, Cardinal 115. 
Police of London 251, 279. 
Pollock, Robert 251. 
Pope, Alexander 215. 
Pope, The only English 58. 
Pope and Canon law 93. 
Pope and Henry VIIL 132, 133. 
Pope and Tribute Monev paid 

to 77. 
Pope and William I. 35. 
Pope, Sir Thomas, Founder of 

Trinity College, Oxford 145. 
Population 154, 218, 279. 
Poor, First Laws Regarding the 

152. 
Porteous, John 228. 
Porteus, Bishop of Chester and 

London 245. 
Portland, Duke of, Statesman 

246, 247, 252. 
Postage 193, 271, 281. 
Potatoes, Introduction of 151. 
Pound Sterling 137. 
Power-loom 242. 
Prayer-book, The 140, 149, 171. 
Presbyterian Clergy 191. 
Preston, Gilbert d'e^ Judge 73. 
Pretender (Old and Young), 

(see Stuart). 
Pride, Colonel, Parlianientarv 

leader 173. 
Prideaux, Ilumphrev, Dean of 
Norwich 22G. 



Priestley, Joseph 245. 

Prince of Wales, First title of 

77. 
Printer, First English 113. 
Printing 113, 121. 122, 103. 
Printing press 283. 
Prior, Alatthew 215. 
Priories 56. 
Promissory notes 214. 
Protectorate 178. 
Protestant Church, etc. (see 

Church). 
Protestantism 143, 149, 199, 203. 
Public Schools, First mentioned 

16. 
Pulteney, William, Earl of 234. 
Puritans, The 165, 174, 190. 
Purveyance 121. 
Pye, Ilenry, Poet Laureate 246. 
P\in, John 172. 
Pythias, Greek Navigator 2. 



Quarles, Francis, Poet 175. 
Quinn, James, Actor 245. 
Querouaille, Louise de 194. 



R 



Radcliffe, Mrs. Ann 251. 
Raffles, .Sir Stamford, Governor 

of Java 251. 
Railways 255, 280. 
Raleigh, Sir Walter 151, 165, 167. 
Ramparts, Tyne to Sohvay 

Frith 27. 
Ramsey, Allan, Poet 215. 
Ratcliff, Sir Richard 11,9. 
Raymond, Earl of Provence 69. 
Rees, Dr. Abraham 251. 
Reform P>ill 25,3. 
Regency of George III. 241. 
Religion (also see Church) 3, 

51, 157, 191, 230. 
Rene, Duke of Anjou 106. 
Rennie, John, Engineer 245. 
Restoration of Charles II. 185 

to 188. 
Rents 44. 



INDEX. 



30^ 



Reynolds, Sir Joshua, Painter 

245. 
Ricardo, David, Banker 251. 
Rich, Rohert 178. 
Richard I. 52, 56, 58 to 62. 
Richard II. 87,89,95,99. 
Richard III. 106, 116 to 119. 
Richard, Duke of York 111. 
Richard, Son of King John, 
Elected King of the Romans 
63. 
Richard, Son of William I. 29. 
Richardson, Samuel, Novelist 

231. 
Richmond, Duke of 247. 
Richmond, Ducal House of 194. 
Ridlev, Bishop Nicholas 143, 

145." 
Rights Bill of 204 
Riots, The Gordon 237. 
Ripon, Earl of. Statesman 274. 
Roads, Early 7, 26. 
Robert of Belseme 44. 
Robert (Curthose) son of Will- 
iam I. 29, 37. 
Robert, Duke of Gloucester 47, 

49. 
Robert, Duke of Normandv 29, 

30, 36, 39. 43. 
Robert of Jamieges, Archbishop 

36. 
Robert II. of Scotland 216. 
Robert III. of Scotland 100, 

216. 
Robert, Sir James, Statesman 

274. 
Roberts, Sir PVederick, Gov- 
ernor General of India 269. 
Robertson, William, Historian 

245. 
Robin Hood, Outlaw 73. 
Robinson, Sir Thomas 233, 234. 
Rochester (see Carr and Wil- 

mot). 
Rockingham (see Wentworth). 
Rodnev, Lord, Admiral 243. 
Roman Catholics Excluded 
from the Ro\'al Succession 
204. 
Romans 1, 5, 7, 8. 
Rooke, Sir George, Admiral 215. 



Rosamond (The Fair) 56. 
Roscoe, William, Litterateur 

251. 
Rosebcry, Lord 276. 
Ross, Sir John, Arctic Explor- 
er 253. 
Rosslyn, James, Earl of 256. 
Rotteville, John, Architect 89. 
Roundheads 172. 
Rowe, Thomas, Litterateur 215. 
Royal Academv of Arts 238. 
Roval Exchange The 153, 190, 

262. 
Royal Society The 192, 220 
Royal Title Act 268. 
Royalists 176. 
Rulers Prior to the Norman 

Conquest, Table ix. 
Rulers After the Norman Con- 
quest, Table x. 
Rupert, Prince of Bavaria 172, 

175, 220. 
Russell, Edward, Earl of Or- 

ford 209. 
Russell, John, Duke of Bedford 

234, 246. 
Russell, Lord lobn, Statesman 

253,2.56,273,274, 275. 
Russell, Sir John, Son-in-law 

of Oliver Cromwell 178. 
Russell, Lord William 191, 195. 
Russell, William, Historian 245. 
Russia, Emperor of, in England 

242. 
Ruvter, Van de, Dutch Admi 

ral 195. 
Ryder, Richard 247, 248. 
Rye House Conspiracy 190. 



Sacheverel, Henry, Divine 213. 

Sackville, Edward, Earl of Dor- 
set 166. 

Sackville, Thomas, Earl of 
Dorset, Poet 156. 

Sailors 15. 

Saint Leger, Sir Anthonv 146. 

Saladin I. Sultan of Egvpt 63. 

Salem 166. 

Salic Law 84. 



308 



INDEX. 



Salisbury (see Cecil.) 

Sanchez, King of Navarre 58. 

Sandwich, John Montague, 
Earl of 24(). 

Sandvs, Sir Kdward 1G2. 

Santa Fe 151. 

Sauniarez, James, Admiral 255. 

Sautre, Sir William, Burned 99, 
101. 

Savage, Richard 233. 

Savery, Thomas, Inventor 278. 

Saville, George, Earl of Hali- 
fax 19G. 

Saxe-Coburg, Ernest, Duke of 
2G0. 

Saxe-Coburg, Duke of 257. 

Saxe-Coburg Meiningen, Duke 
of 252. 

Saxe-Coburg, Prince of 248. 

Saxons 9, 10, 11, 24, 25, 26. 

Saxon V, East, West and .South 
10. 

Scarle, John de. Lord Chancel- 
lor 101. 

Schools: Blue Coat 141; Char- 
ter House 8G, 1G3; First Pub- 
lic IG; Rugby 153; St. Paul's 
135; Westminster 153; Win- 
chester 90. 

Schwartz, Inventor of Cannon 
84. 

Science 217, 220. 

Scotland 10, 57, GO, 75, 171, 211. 

Scots G, 9, 17. 

Scott, John, Earl of Eldon 247, 
255. 

Scott, Sir Walter, Novelist 251. 

Scottish Crown 75, 7G. 

Scroggs, .Sir William, Chief 
Justice 221. 

Scrope, Archbishop 100, 101. 

Seal, The Great 176. 

.Sebert or Sebba, King of Essex 
12, 27. 

Secretary of State The, Office 
Created 137. 

Selbourne, Earl of 275. 

Selden, John, Archx-ologist 175. 

Sewing Machines 281. 

Sevenis, Lucius Septimus, Ro- 
man Emperor 27. 



Seymour, Edward, Duke of 
Somerset 139, 140, 142. 

Sevmour, Jane, Wife Henry 
VIII. 129. 

.Sevmour, Thomas, Lord Sude- 
fev 142. 

Shaftesbury, Earl of 209. 

Shah of Persia 270. 

Shakespeare William 155. 

Sharpe, Archlnshop 195. 

Sheffield-Whittle 153. 

Sheil, Richard Lalor 273 

Shelburne Henry, Earl of 24G 

Shelley, Percy B. 245. 

Sheridan, Richard Brinsley 244. 

Sheriffe I>. Founder of Rugby 
School 153. 

Sherlock, Bishop 215. 

.Shillings First Coined 125. 

Ship >Ioney 171. 

.Ships and Shipping 15, 48, 125, 
154, 158, 281. 

Shirlev, James, The Dramatist 
155.' 

Shore, Jane 113. 

Shovel,\Sir Cloudsley 214, 215. 

.Shrewsbury, Charles, Duke of 
216. 

vShrewsbury (see Talbot). 

Siddons Mrs. 255. 

Sidmouth, Viscount 247, 248, 
252. 

Sidn'ey, Algernon 190, 191, 195. 

.Sidney, Lord 246. 

Sidnev, Sir Philip, Statesman 
155." 

Sieges: Algiers 244; Alnwick 
40; Calais 84; Carlisle 232 
Chaluz 58; Gibraltar 214, 243 
Harfleur 104; Mantes 30,36 
Quebec 233, 243; Rochelie 
174; Tournev 85. 

Silures or Wefsh 11. 

Silver-plate 152. 

Simeon of Durham 45. 

.Simnel, Lambert 126. 

Six Articles or the Bloodv-Bill 
134. 

Siward, Earl of Northumber- 
land 23. 

Slavery 7, 18, 153, 236,554. 



INDEX, 



309 



Sloane, Sir Hans 234. 

Small-pox 277. 

Sincaton, John, Engineer 234. 

Sniiike, Robert, Architect 272. 

Smith, James, Humorist 255 

Smith, Svdnev 245. 

Smollett," Dr. Tobias 230, 245. 

Sobieski, John, King of Poland 
224. 

Society of Jesus 137. 

Society, The Royal 192. 

Socinius, Lotlius 138. 

Somers, Lord John 209. 

Somerset, Robert Carr, Ear! of 
167. 

Somerset (see Sevmour). 

Sonnet, First English 136. 

Sophia, Daughter of George I. 
223. 

Sophia, Dorothea, Wife of 
George I. 223. 

Sophia, Duchess of Brunswick 
160. 

South African Company 270. 

South, Dr. Rol)ert 226. " 

South-sea Speculation 225. 

Sou they, Robert 272. 

South \vark 80. 

Spanish Netherlands 192. 

Spanish Succession War 208. 

Speaker House of Commons, 
first appointed 84. 

Spectacles first used 76. 

Spencer, Charles, Earl of Sun- 
derland, Statesman George I. 
226. 

Spencer, Charles, Earl of Sun- 
derland, Statesman William 
HI 209. 

Spencer (de Spencer) Fa\orite 
of Edward H.Sl. 

Spencer, George John, Viscount 
Althorp, Statesman William 
IV. 255, 256. 

Spencer, Herbert, Scientist, 271. 

Spencer, Robert, Earl of .Sun- 
derland, Statesman James II. 
201. 

Spenser, Edmund 155. 

Spert, Sir Thomas 136 



Spinning Frame and Jenny 242, 

278. 
Sports, King James' Book of 

166. 
Spurgeon, Rey. Charles H. 272. 
Stafford, Edward, Duke of 

Buckingham High Constable 

1.^5. 
Stafford, Humphrey, Duke of 

Buckingliam 109. 
Stafford, Henry, Fayorite of 

Richard HI. 119. 
Stafford, William Howard, Vis- 
count 193. 
Stafford, Marquis of, .Statesman 

George HI. 247. 
Stamps, Postage 281. 
Stanhope, Hon. Edward 276. 
.Stanhope, James, Earl of, States- 
man George I. 226. 
.Stanhope, Philip de, Earl of 

Chesterfield 234. 
Stanley, Bishop 128. 
.Stanley, William Owen 275. 
.Stanley (see Derby). 
Staple'lnn, Holborn 89. 
Star-Chamber 125, 171. 
Starch 145. 

Steamboat, The first 279. 
Steam Machinery and Motors 

214, 236, 242, 249, 250, 255, 278, 

279. 
Steele, Richard 215. 
Stepiien of Blois 46. 
Stephen's, St. Chapel 84. 
Stephenson, George, Engineer, 

255, 272. 
Stephenson, Robert, Engineer, 

255, 272. 
Stereotyping 232. 
Sterne, Lawrence 233. 
Stewart, Dugald, Philosopher 

245. 
Stillingfleet, Bishop 200. 
Stockings, Silk and Worsted 45, 

153. 
Stone Age 1. 
Stone Churches First Built 25, 

26. 
Stormont, Lord William 246. 
Stothard, Thomas, R. A. 255. 



310 



INDEX. 



Slowc, John, Antiquarian 151, 

156. 
Strafford, Thomas Wcntwortli, 

Earl of 170, 171, 175. 
Strand, London loG. 
Straw, Jack 88. 
Street Lighting, etc. 103, 219. 
Strode, John, Parliamentary 

Leader 172. 
Stuart, Lady ArabeUa IGl. 
Stuart, Charles Edward (^'oung 

Pretender) 217, 224, 232, 233, 

277. 
.Stuart, Ilenrv, Cardinal York 

224. 
Stuart, Ilenrv, Lord Darnley IGO 
Stuart, House of IGO, 186, 216, 

277. 
Stuart, Janies Francis Edward 

(Old Pretender) 197, 217, 224, 

225. 
Stuart, Marv, Queen of Scots 

146, 149, 160, 216. 
Stuart, John, Earl of Bute, 

Statesman 236, 246. 
Succession to Crown regulated 

204. 
Succession to the Crown, Rights 

of 99, 100. 
Succession to Crown, Table xv. 
Suetonius, Roman Emperor 5. 
Suffrage, Rights of 121,253,268. 
Suffolk, Charles Brandon, Duke 

of 142. 
Suffolk, Charles Brandon, Duke 

of, Fatherof Ladv Jane Grcv 

144. 
Suffolk, Clarence Brandon, 

Duke of 12:5. 
Suffolk, William, Duke of 109. 
Sunday Observance and .Sports 

154, '166. 
Sunderland (see Spencer). 
Supremacy Act 1,32. 
Surrev, Earl of, First writer of 

blaiik verse 135, 136, 1.38. 
.Sunderland, Earl of 226. 
.Sweden 21, 25. 
Swevn, Danish King 20. 
Swift, Dean 215. 
Symington, William, 279. 



Talbot, Charles, Earl of Shrews- 
bury, .Statesman 226. 
Talbot, John, Earl of Shrews- 

burv 105. 
Talbo't, Richard, Earl of Tvr- 

connel 201, 205, 208. 
Tarn, Lsland of 34. 
Taxes and taxation 19, 22, 169, 

207. 
Taylor, Bishop Jeremy 195. 
Tea introduced 221. 
Teignmouth, Lord John -Shoi^e 

255. 
Telegraphing 241, 254, 282. 
Telephone 283. 
Telescopes 153, 217. 
Telford, Thomas 249, 2.50. 
Templars, Knights, Order of 44, 

40,85,93. 
Temple Bar 270. 
Temple, Earl 2.34. 
Temple, Sir William 19-5, 196. 
Temple, The Middle 56, 85, 153. 
Tennvson, Lord Alfred 271. 
Test-act 191, 250. 
Thackerav, William Makepeace 

271, 
Thane or Nobleman 18. 
Thanet, Island of 9. 
Theatres 1.53, 154, 157, 158, 192, 

242. 
Theobald, Archbishop 54. 
Theobalds, The Palace of 161, 

270. 
Theodore, King of Abvssinia 

267. 
Theology 158. 
Thirty-Nine Articles 140. 
Thistle wood, Arthur 249. 
Thomas, Archbishop 46. 
Thomas, Lord Clifford 196. 
Thomas of Lancaster, Duke of 

Clarence 97, 101. 
Thomas, Son of Ed^vard I. 

74. 
Thomson, James 233. 
Thornhill, Sir James 226. 
Thread, Cotton 1.36. 
Thurlow, Lord 246. 



INDEX. 



311 



Tierney, George 251. 

Tile, First used for Roofs 71. 

Tiilotson, Archbishop 200. 

Time Measured by CandlesTS. 

Times Newspaper 238. 

Tobacco, Introduced 151. 

Tosti, Brother of Harold II. 
23. 

Tournament 49. 

Tourvillo, Comte de 206. 

Tower of London 34, 39, 47, 
112. 

Townshend, Charles, Viscount 
226. 

To« nshend, Charles, States- 
man George III. 246. 

Tracy, William dc. One of 
Becket's Assassins 55. 

Trafalgar (see Battles.) 

Translations 12, 16, 42, 94, 113, 
136, 167. 

Trevelvan, Sir Charles Edward 
271. ■' 

Treaties of Aix laChapelle 233; 
with America 241; of Breda 
195; with Holland 232; of 
Limerick 205; of London 
(1827) 250; of Pardo 232; of 
Paris, (1763) 2.33; of Paris 
(1782- 1 783) 243; of Parti- 
tion with France and Ger- 
many 207; with Prussia 250; 
of Ryswick 207, 208; of Se- 
ville "232; (Secret) of Dover 
192; with Spain 155; with 
States General 192; of Troves 
102; of Utrecht 215; with 
United States (1SS8) 270. 

Trinity House 136. 

Tudor, House of 122, 157. 

Tudor, Edmund, Earl of Rich- 
mond 122. 

Tudor, Owen 122. 

Tunnel Thames 262. 

Turner, Joseph M. W. 273. 

Tvler, Wat 88, 90. 

Tvndale, William 138. 

T\ pe 163. 

Tyrrel, Walter Sir 37, 41. 

Tyrrell, Sir James 116. 



u 

Uffa, King of East Anglia 10,27. 

Ulster 196. 

Umbrellas, Introduced 221. 

Underground Railway 280. 

Uniformity Act 191. 

Union of England and Scotland 

164, 211, 212. 
L^niversities Cambridge 12, 

263; Dublin 80; London 250, 

267; Oxford 15. 
Universities, Table xxxii. 
Uslier, James 181. 



V 

accination 277. 
alence, Aymar de 78. 
anbrugh. Sir John 217. 
ane. Sir Harrj' 181. 
asa, Guslaxus I. of Sweden 
138. 

ansittart. Right Hon. Nicho- 
las 248. 

an Tromp, Admiral 181. 
illeins or Slaves 18. 
ere, Robert de. Earl of Ox- 
ford 90. 

ernon, E^dward, Admiral 233. 
entilators 232. 
ictoria. Queen 257 et seq. 
illiers, Barbara, Duchess of 
Cleveland 194. 

illiers, George, Duke of 
Buckingham 195, 196. 
illiers, George, Duke of Buck- 
ingham, Favorite of James I. 
164. 166, 167, 169, 175. 
inci Leonaido di 138. 
irginia 163. 

oltigern, Chief of Kent 9. 
olunteers (see Army.) 

w 



Wages 220. 
Wales 57, 78, 137. 
Wales, Prince of, Title 77. 
Wallace, Sir William 78. 
Waller, Edmund 181, 



312 



INDEX. 



Waller, Sir William, Parlia- 
mentary General 181. 

Wallingford Conference 47. 

Wallis, Samuel, Navigator 241. 

Waipole, Horace, Earl of Or- 
ford 2;},'}. 

Waipole, Robert, Earl of Or- 
ford 224, 225, 22G. 

Waipole, Spencer 11. Statesman 
274, 27.'). 

Walsingham, Sir Francis 150. 

Walsingliam of St. Albans, 
Monkish Historian 105. 

Walters, Lucy 194. 

Walton, Isaac 175. 

Walworth, William, Lord May- 
or of London 88, 90. 

Wantage Celebrates Alfred's 
Anniversary 17. 

Warbeck Perkin 126, 127. 

War Shijis 125. 

Warton, Thomas, Poet Lau- 
reate 24G. 

Warwick, Edward Plantagenet, 
Earl of 124, 127. 

Warwick, John, Duke of Nor- 
thundierland 140, 142. 

Warwick, Earl of 18. 

Warwick, Richard Neville 
(Kingmaker) 112, 115. 

Watches Introduced 153. 

Watt, lames, Inventor 242,245, 
278." 

Watts, Dr. Isaac, Divine 226. 

Weaving Introduced from 
Flanders 84. 

Weights and Measures Regu- 
lated 44. 

Welsh Bards Massacred 75. 

Welleslev, Arthur, Duke of 
Wellington 252, 253, 256, 257, 
264, 27.3, 274. 

Wellore, David de 87. 

Wentworth, Charles, Marquis 
of Rockingham 246. 

Wentworth, Thomas, Earl of 
Strafford 170, 171, 175. 

Weslev, Charles and John 230, 
245. ■ 

West, Benjamin, Painter 251. 



Westminster Abbev 12, 22, 23, 
75, 126. 

Westminster Hall 39, 89. 

Westmoreland, Earl of 247. 

Wharncliffe, Lord 256. 

Wharton, Thomas, Marquis of 
226. 

White, Gilbert, Anticpiarian, 
233. 

Wliite, Henry Kirke, Poet 245. 

White, Jeremiah, Chaplain to 
Oliver Cromwell 181. 

Whitefield, [ohn 245. 

Whitehall Palace 17.3. 

Whitehead, William 246. 

Whittle, the Shetlleld 1.53. 

Whittington, Sir Ricliard 105. 

Wilberforce, William 242,255. 

Wilkes, John 2,36,2.37. 

Wilkie, Sir David 272. 

Will, Power to Bequeath By 45. 

William I. (The Conqueror) 23, 
29 32 33 35. 

Wni'iam'll'. 29, .36 to-.38. 

William III. 198, 201 to 207. 

William IV. 235, 252. 

William, Duke of Aquitaine 52. 

William, Earl of Hainault 82. 

William, Earl of Pembroke 58, 
81. 

William, King of Sicily 52. 

William, Infant Son Henry II. 
52. 

William, Son of Henry 1.42,43. 

William, Son of Robert, Duke 
of Normand\- 45. 

William, Son of Stephen of 
Blois 46. 

William I. of Scotland 57. 

Williams, David, Master of 
Rolls 128. 

Willoughby, Sir Hugh 141, 142. 

Wilmington, Lord 234. 

Wilmot, John, Earl of Roches- 
ter 195. 

^Vinceslaus, Emperor of Ger- 
many 87. 

Windham, William 247. 

^VindInills 76. 

Windsor 85, 120. 

Wine 76. 



INDEX. 



313 



Winifred, St. 25. 

Win.stanlev, William, Architect 

Eddystone liglithouse 214. . 
Winthrop, John IGC 
Witan Council 2(3. 
Wolfe, General 229, 233. 
Wolsev, Cardinal 131, 132, 135, 

13G, "138. 
Wolseley, Raljih, JJaron of the 

Excliequer 11',). 
Woodstock Park 5(). 
Woodville, Klizahelh 111, 115. 
Woodville, .Sir Richard 111. 
Woolens, Flemish 44, 93. 
Woolsack 93. 
Wool-tratric 89. 
Wordsworth, William 273. 
Wren, Sir Christopher 190, 196, 

214, 215, 217. 
Wriotheslev, Thomas, Earl of 

Southampton 139. 



Wvatt, Samuel, Architect of the 

Trinity Mouse 130. 
Wvatt, Sir Thomas, Poet 136, 

138, 144. 
Wvcherlev, William 200. 
WVckliffe; John 90. 
Wvkeham, William of 90. 
WVnetlete, William of 110. 
W\on, Henjamin, Joseph S. and 

William, Medalists 273. 



Yates, Edmund 271. 

Yeoman, Richard, Martyr 146. 

Yeomen of the s^uard 125. 

Yewtrees 113. 

Youn<^, Edward 233. 

York ^7, 10,32. 

York, Mouse of 82, 111. 



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